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Wu M, Hackney ME, Ting LH. Low-force human-human hand interactions induce gait changes through sensorimotor engagement instead of direct mechanical effects. Sci Rep 2024; 14:3614. [PMID: 38351215 PMCID: PMC10864400 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-53991-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Physical human-robot interactions (pHRI) often provide mechanical force and power to aid walking without requiring voluntary effort from the human. Alternatively, principles of physical human-human interactions (pHHI) can inspire pHRI that aids walking by engaging human sensorimotor processes. We hypothesize that low-force pHHI can intuitively induce a person to alter their walking through haptic communication. In our experiment, an expert partner dancer influenced novice participants to alter step frequency solely through hand interactions. Without prior instruction, training, or knowledge of the expert's goal, novices decreased step frequency 29% and increased step frequency 18% based on low forces (< 20 N) at the hand. Power transfer at the hands was 3-700 × smaller than what is necessary to propel locomotion, suggesting that hand interactions did not mechanically constrain the novice's gait. Instead, the sign/direction of hand forces and power may communicate information about how to alter walking. Finally, the expert modulated her arm effective dynamics to match that of each novice, suggesting a bidirectional haptic communication strategy for pHRI that adapts to the human. Our results provide a framework for developing pHRI at the hand that may be applicable to assistive technology and physical rehabilitation, human-robot manufacturing, physical education, and recreation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengnan Wu
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Madeleine E Hackney
- Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lena H Ting
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
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2
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Charbonneau M, Curioni A, McEllin L, Strachan JWA. Flexible Cultural Learning Through Action Coordination. PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2024; 19:201-222. [PMID: 37458767 DOI: 10.1177/17456916231182923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
The cultural transmission of technical know-how has proven vital to the success of our species. The broad diversity of learning contexts and social configurations, as well as the various kinds of coordinated interactions they involve, speaks to our capacity to flexibly adapt to and succeed in transmitting vital knowledge in various learning contexts. Although often recognized by ethnographers, the flexibility of cultural learning has so far received little attention in terms of cognitive mechanisms. We argue that a key feature of the flexibility of cultural learning is that both the models and learners recruit cognitive mechanisms of action coordination to modulate their behavior contingently on the behavior of their partner, generating a process of mutual adaptation supporting the successful transmission of technical skills in diverse and fluctuating learning environments. We propose that the study of cultural learning would benefit from the experimental methods, results, and insights of joint-action research and, complementarily, that the field of joint-action research could expand its scope by integrating a learning and cultural dimension. Bringing these two fields of research together promises to enrich our understanding of cultural learning, its contextual flexibility, and joint action coordination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu Charbonneau
- Africa Institute for Research in Economics and Social Sciences, Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique
| | | | - Luke McEllin
- Department of Cognitive Science, Central European University
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3
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Colomer C, Dhamala M, Ganesh G, Lagarde J. Granger Geweke Causality reveals information exchange during physical interaction is modulated by task difficulty. Hum Mov Sci 2023; 92:103139. [PMID: 37703590 DOI: 10.1016/j.humov.2023.103139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2022] [Revised: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
The haptic sense is an important mode of communication during physical interactions, and it is known to enable humans to estimate key features of their partner's behavior. It is proposed that such estimations are based upon the exchange of information mediated by the interaction forces, resulting in role distribution and coordination between partners. In the present study, we examined whether the information exchange is functionally modified to adapt to the task, or whether it is a fixed process, leaving the adaptation to individual's behaviors. We analyzed the forces during an empirical dyadic interaction task using Granger-Geweke causality analysis, which allowed us to quantify the causal influence of each individual's forces on their partner's. The dynamics of relative phase were also examined. We observed an increase of inter-partner influence with an increase in the spatial accuracy required by the task, demonstrating an adaptation of information flow to the task. This increase of exchange with the spatial accuracy constraint was accompanied by an increase of errors and of the variability of the relative phase between forces. The influence was dominated by participants in a specific role, showing a clear role division as well as task division between the dyad partners. Moreover, the influence occurred in the [2.15-7] Hz frequency band, demonstrating its importance as a frequency band of interest during cooperation involving haptic interaction. Several interpretations are introduced, ranging from sub-division of motion control to phase-amplitude coupling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clémentine Colomer
- EuroMov Digital Health in Motion, Univ Montpellier, IMT Mines Ales, 700 Av. du Pic Saint-Loup, 34090 Montpellier, France.
| | - Mukesh Dhamala
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.
| | - Gowrishankar Ganesh
- Laboratoire d'Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier (LIRMM), Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, 161 Rue Ada, 34095 Montpellier, France.
| | - Julien Lagarde
- EuroMov Digital Health in Motion, Univ Montpellier, IMT Mines Ales, 700 Av. du Pic Saint-Loup, 34090 Montpellier, France.
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4
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Takai A, Fu Q, Doibata Y, Lisi G, Tsuchiya T, Mojtahedi K, Yoshioka T, Kawato M, Morimoto J, Santello M. Learning acquisition of consistent leader-follower relationships depends on implicit haptic interactions. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3476. [PMID: 36859436 PMCID: PMC9977766 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29722-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Are leaders made or born? Leader-follower roles have been well characterized in social science, but they remain somewhat obscure in sensory-motor coordination. Furthermore, it is unknown how and why leader-follower relationships are acquired, including innate versus acquired controversies. We developed a novel asymmetrical coordination task in which two participants (dyad) need to collaborate in transporting a simulated beam while maintaining its horizontal attitude. This experimental paradigm was implemented by twin robotic manipulanda, simulated beam dynamics, haptic interactions, and a projection screen. Clear leader-follower relationships were learned only when strong haptic feedback was introduced. This phenomenon occurred despite participants not being informed that they were interacting with each other and the large number of equally-valid alternative dyadic coordination strategies. We demonstrate the emergence of consistent leader-follower relationships in sensory-motor coordination, and further show that haptic interaction is essential for dyadic co-adaptation. These results provide insights into neural mechanisms responsible for the formation of leader-follower relationships in our society.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asuka Takai
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan
- Graduate School of Engineering Division of Mechanical Engineering, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Qiushi Fu
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, USA
| | - Yuzuru Doibata
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan
| | - Giuseppe Lisi
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan
| | - Toshiki Tsuchiya
- School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA
| | - Keivan Mojtahedi
- School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA
| | - Toshinori Yoshioka
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan
- XNef, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Mitsuo Kawato
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan
| | - Jun Morimoto
- Brain Information Communication Research Laboratory Group, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Seika, Japan.
- Graduate School of Informatics, Department of Systems Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
| | - Marco Santello
- School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA.
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5
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Lokesh R, Sullivan S, Calalo JA, Roth A, Swanik B, Carter MJ, Cashaback JGA. Humans utilize sensory evidence of others' intended action to make online decisions. Sci Rep 2022; 12:8806. [PMID: 35614073 PMCID: PMC9132989 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-12662-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 05/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
We often acquire sensory information from another person's actions to make decisions on how to move, such as when walking through a crowded hallway. Past interactive decision-making research has focused on cognitive tasks that did not allow for sensory information exchange between humans prior to a decision. Here, we test the idea that humans accumulate sensory evidence of another person's intended action to decide their own movement. In a competitive sensorimotor task, we show that humans exploit time to accumulate sensory evidence of another's intended action and utilize this information to decide how to move. We captured this continuous interactive decision-making behaviour with a drift-diffusion model. Surprisingly, aligned with a 'paralysis-by-analysis' phenomenon, we found that humans often waited too long to accumulate sensory evidence and failed to make a decision. Understanding how humans engage in interactive and online decision-making has broad implications that spans sociology, athletics, interactive technology, and economics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rakshith Lokesh
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Seth Sullivan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Jan A Calalo
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Adam Roth
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Brenden Swanik
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Michael J Carter
- Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
| | - Joshua G A Cashaback
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
- Biomechanics and Movements Science Program, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
- Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
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6
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Inter-personal motor interaction is facilitated by hand pairing. Sci Rep 2022; 12:545. [PMID: 35017620 PMCID: PMC8752769 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-04595-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 12/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The extent to which hand dominance may influence how each agent contributes to inter-personal coordination remains unknown. In the present study, right-handed human participants performed object balancing tasks either in dyadic conditions with each agent using one hand (left or right), or in bimanual conditions where each agent performed the task individually with both hands. We found that object load was shared between two hands more asymmetrically in dyadic than single-agent conditions. However, hand dominance did not influence how two hands shared the object load. In contrast, hand dominance was a major factor in modulating hand vertical movement speed. Furthermore, the magnitude of internal force produced by two hands against each other correlated with the synchrony between the two hands’ movement in dyads. This finding supports the important role of internal force in haptic communication. Importantly, both internal force and movement synchrony were affected by hand dominance of the paired participants. Overall, these results demonstrate, for the first time, that pairing of one dominant and one non-dominant hand may promote asymmetrical roles within a dyad during joint physical interactions. This appears to enable the agent using the dominant hand to actively maintain effective haptic communication and task performance.
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Wu M, Drnach L, Bong SM, Song YS, Ting LH. Human-Human Hand Interactions Aid Balance During Walking by Haptic Communication. Front Robot AI 2021; 8:735575. [PMID: 34805289 PMCID: PMC8599825 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2021.735575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Principles from human-human physical interaction may be necessary to design more intuitive and seamless robotic devices to aid human movement. Previous studies have shown that light touch can aid balance and that haptic communication can improve performance of physical tasks, but the effects of touch between two humans on walking balance has not been previously characterized. This study examines physical interaction between two persons when one person aids another in performing a beam-walking task. 12 pairs of healthy young adults held a force sensor with one hand while one person walked on a narrow balance beam (2 cm wide x 3.7 m long) and the other person walked overground by their side. We compare balance performance during partnered vs. solo beam-walking to examine the effects of haptic interaction, and we compare hand interaction mechanics during partnered beam-walking vs. overground walking to examine how the interaction aided balance. While holding the hand of a partner, participants were able to walk further on the beam without falling, reduce lateral sway, and decrease angular momentum in the frontal plane. We measured small hand force magnitudes (mean of 2.2 N laterally and 3.4 N vertically) that created opposing torque components about the beam axis and calculated the interaction torque, the overlapping opposing torque that does not contribute to motion of the beam-walker’s body. We found higher interaction torque magnitudes during partnered beam-walking vs. partnered overground walking, and correlation between interaction torque magnitude and reductions in lateral sway. To gain insight into feasible controller designs to emulate human-human physical interactions for aiding walking balance, we modeled the relationship between each torque component and motion of the beam-walker’s body as a mass-spring-damper system. Our model results show opposite types of mechanical elements (active vs. passive) for the two torque components. Our results demonstrate that hand interactions aid balance during partnered beam-walking by creating opposing torques that primarily serve haptic communication, and our model of the torques suggest control parameters for implementing human-human balance aid in human-robot interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengnan Wu
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Luke Drnach
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Sistania M Bong
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Yun Seong Song
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO, United States
| | - Lena H Ting
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States.,Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Division of Physical Therapy, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
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8
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Kim SJ, Wen Y, Kucuktabak EB, Zhan S, Lynch K, Hargrove L, Perreault EJ, Pons JL. A Framework for Dyadic Physical Interaction Studies During Ankle Motor Tasks. IEEE Robot Autom Lett 2021. [DOI: 10.1109/lra.2021.3092265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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9
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Takagi A, Maxwell S, Melendez-Calderon A, Burdet E. The dominant limb preferentially stabilizes posture in a bimanual task with physical coupling. J Neurophysiol 2020; 123:2154-2160. [PMID: 32348682 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00047.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans are endowed with an ability to skillfully handle objects, like when holding a jar with the nondominant hand while opening the lid with the dominant hand. Dynamic dominance, a prevailing theory in handedness research, proposes that the nondominant hand is specialized for postural stability, which would explain why right-handed people hold the jar steady using the left hand. However, the underlying specialization of the nondominant hand has only been tested unimanually, or in a bimanual task where the two hands had different functions. Using a dedicated dual-wrist robotic interface, we tested the dynamic dominance hypothesis in a bimanual task where both hands carry out the same function. We examined how left- and right-handed subjects held onto a vibrating virtual object using their wrists, which were physically coupled by the object. Muscular activity of the wrist flexors and extensors revealed a preference for cocontracting the dominant hand during both holding and transport of the object, which suggests proficiency in the dominant hand for stabilization, contradicting the dynamic dominance hypothesis. While the reliance on the dominant hand was partially explained by its greater strength, the Edinburgh inventory was a better predictor of the difference in the cocontraction between the dominant and nondominant hands. When provided with redundancy to stabilize the task, the dominant hand preferentially cocontracts to absorb perturbing forces.NEW & NOTEWORTHY We found that subjects prefer to stabilize a bimanually held object by cocontracting their dominant limb, contradicting the established view that the nondominant limb is specialized toward stabilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Takagi
- NTT Communication Science Laboratories, Atsugi, Kanagawa, Japan.,Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, United Kingdom.,Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (PRESTO), Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan
| | - S Maxwell
- Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - A Melendez-Calderon
- School of Information Technology and Electronic Engineering, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia.,Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - E Burdet
- Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, United Kingdom
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Borzelli D, Burdet E, Pastorelli S, d'Avella A, Gastaldi L. Identification of the best strategy to command variable stiffness using electromyographic signals. J Neural Eng 2020; 17:016058. [PMID: 31958778 DOI: 10.1088/1741-2552/ab6d88] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE In the last decades, many EMG-controlled robotic devices were developed. Since stiffness control may be required to perform skillful interactions, different groups developed devices whose stiffness is real-time controlled based on EMG signal samples collected from the operator. However, this control strategy may be fatiguing. In this study, we proposed and experimentally validated a novel stiffness control strategy, based on the average muscle co-contraction estimated from EMG samples collected in the previous 1 or 2 s. APPROACH Nine subjects performed a tracking task with their right wrist in five different sessions. In four sessions a haptic device (Hi-5) applied a sinusoidal perturbing torque. In Baseline session, co-contraction reduced the effect of the perturbation only by stiffening the wrist. In contrast, during aided sessions the perturbation amplitude was also reduced (mimicking the effect of additional stiffening provided by EMG-driven robotic device) either proportionally to the co-contraction exerted by the subject sample-by-sample (Proportional), or according to the average co-contraction exerted in the previous 1 s (Integral 1s), or 2 s (Integral 2s). Task error, metabolic cost during the tracking task, perceived fatigue, and the median EMG frequency calculated during a sub-maximal isometric torque generation tasks that alternated with the tracking were compared across sessions. MAIN RESULTS Positive effects of the reduction of the perturbation provided by co-contraction estimation was identified in all the investigated variables. Integral 1s session showed lower metabolic cost with respect to the Proportional session, and lower perceived fatigue with respect to both the Proportional and the Integral 2s sessions. SIGNIFICANCE This study's results showed that controlling the stiffness of an EMG-driven robotic device proportionally to the operator's co-contraction, averaged in the previous 1 s, represents the best control strategy because it required less metabolic cost and led to a lower perceived fatigue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniele Borzelli
- Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, Messina, Italy. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Turin, Italy. Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed
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11
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Kager S, Hussain A, Cherpin A, Melendez-Calderon A, Takagi A, Endo S, Burdet E, Hirche S, Ang MH, Campolo D. The effect of skill level matching in dyadic interaction on learning of a tracing task. IEEE Int Conf Rehabil Robot 2020; 2019:824-829. [PMID: 31374732 DOI: 10.1109/icorr.2019.8779485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Dyadic interaction between humans has gained great research interest in the last years. The effects of factors that influence the interaction, as e.g. roles or skill level matching, are still not well understood. In this paper, we further investigated the effect of skill level matching between partners on learning of a visuo-motor task. Understanding the effect of skill level matching is crucial for applications in collaborative rehabilitation. Fifteen healthy participants were asked to trace a path while being subjected to a visuo-motor rotation (Novice). The Novices were paired with a partner, forming one of the three Dyad Types: a) haptic connection to another Novice, b) haptic connection to an Expert (no visuo-motor rotation), or c) no haptic. The intervention consisted of a Familiarization phase, followed by a Training phase, in which the Novices were learning the task in the respective Dyad Type, and a Test phase in which the learning was assessed (haptic connection removed, if any). Results suggest that learning of the task with a haptic connection to an Expert was least beneficial. However, during the Training phase the dyads comprising an Expert clearly outperformed the dyads with matched skill levels. The results point towards the same direction as previous findings in literature and can be explained by current motor-learning theories. Future work needs to corroborate these preliminary results.
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12
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Kucukyilmaz A, Issak I. Online Identification of Interaction Behaviors From Haptic Data During Collaborative Object Transfer. IEEE Robot Autom Lett 2020. [DOI: 10.1109/lra.2019.2945261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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13
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Chackochan VT, Sanguineti V. Incomplete information about the partner affects the development of collaborative strategies in joint action. PLoS Comput Biol 2019; 15:e1006385. [PMID: 31830100 PMCID: PMC6907753 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2018] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Physical interaction with a partner plays an essential role in our life experience and is the basis of many daily activities. When two physically coupled humans have different and partly conflicting goals, they face the challenge of negotiating some type of collaboration. This requires that both participants understand their partner’s state and current actions. But, how would the collaboration be affected if information about their partner were unreliable or incomplete? We designed an experiment in which two players (a dyad) are mechanically connected through a virtual spring, but cannot see each other. They were instructed to perform reaching movements with the same start and end position, but through different via-points. In different groups of dyads we varied the amount of information provided to each player about his/her partner: haptic only (the interaction force perceived through the virtual spring), visuo-haptic (the interaction force is also displayed on the screen), and partner visible (in addition to interaction force, partner position is continuously displayed on the screen). We found that incomplete information about the partner affects not only the speed at which collaboration is achieved (less information, slower learning), but also the actual collaboration strategy. In particular, incomplete or unreliable information leads to an interaction strategy characterized by alternating leader-follower roles. Conversely, more reliable information leads to more synchronous behaviors, in which no specific roles can be identified. Simulations based on a combination of game theory and Bayesian estimation suggested that synchronous behaviors correspond to optimal interaction (Nash equilibrium). Roles emerge as sub-optimal forms of interaction, which minimize the need to account for the partner. These findings suggest that collaborative strategies in joint action are shaped by the trade-off between the task requirements and the uncertainty of the information available about the partner. Many activities in daily life involve physical interaction with a partner or opponent. In many situations, they have conflicting goals and need to negotiate some form of collaboration. Although very common, these situations have rarely been studied empirically. In this study, we specifically address what is a ‘optimal’ collaboration and how it can be achieved. We also address how developing a collaboration is affected by uncertainty about partner actions. Through a combination of empirical studies and computer simulations based on game theory, we show that subject pairs (dyads) are capable of developing stable collaborations, but the learned collaboration strategy depends on the reliability of the information about the partner. High-information dyads converge to optimal strategies in a game-theoretic sense. Low-information dyads converge to strategies that minimize the need to know about the partner. These findings are consistent with a game-theoretic learning model which relies on estimates of partner actions, but not partner goals. This similarity sheds some light on the minimal computational machinery which is necessary to an intelligent agent in order to develop stable physical collaborations with a human partner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vinil T. Chackochan
- Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering, University of Genoa, Genova, Italy
| | - Vittorio Sanguineti
- Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering, University of Genoa, Genova, Italy
- * E-mail:
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14
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Takagi A, Usai F, Ganesh G, Sanguineti V, Burdet E. Haptic communication between humans is tuned by the hard or soft mechanics of interaction. PLoS Comput Biol 2018; 14:e1005971. [PMID: 29565966 PMCID: PMC5863953 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2017] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
To move a hard table together, humans may coordinate by following the dominant partner's motion [1-4], but this strategy is unsuitable for a soft mattress where the perceived forces are small. How do partners readily coordinate in such differing interaction dynamics? To address this, we investigated how pairs tracked a target using flexion-extension of their wrists, which were coupled by a hard, medium or soft virtual elastic band. Tracking performance monotonically increased with a stiffer band for the worse partner, who had higher tracking error, at the cost of the skilled partner's muscular effort. This suggests that the worse partner followed the skilled one's lead, but simulations show that the results are better explained by a model where partners share movement goals through the forces, whilst the coupling dynamics determine the capacity of communicable information. This model elucidates the versatile mechanism by which humans can coordinate during both hard and soft physical interactions to ensure maximum performance with minimal effort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atsushi Takagi
- Institute of Innovative Research, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, South Kensington, London, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (AT); (EB)
| | - Francesco Usai
- Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering, Università degli studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax (NS), Canada
| | - Gowrishankar Ganesh
- CNRS-AIST JRL (Joint Robotics Laboratory), UMI3218/RL, Umezono, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan
| | - Vittorio Sanguineti
- Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering, Università degli studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
| | - Etienne Burdet
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, South Kensington, London, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (AT); (EB)
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Mireles EJA, De Santis D, Morasso P, Zenzeri J. Transferring knowledge during dyadic interaction: The role of the expert in the learning process. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2017; 2016:2149-2152. [PMID: 28268757 DOI: 10.1109/embc.2016.7591154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Physical interaction between man and machines is increasing the interest of the research as well as the industrial community. It is known that physical coupling between active persons can be beneficial and increase the performance of the dyad compared to an individual. However, the factors that may result in performance benefits are still poorly understood. The aim of this work is to investigate how the different initial skill levels of the interacting partners influence the learning of a stabilization task. Twelve subjects, divided in two groups, trained in couples in a joint stabilization task. In the first group the couples were composed of two naive, while in the second a naive was trained together with an expert. Results show that training with an expert results in the greatest performance in the joint task. However, this benefit is not transferred to the individual when performing the same task bimanually.
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Physically interacting individuals estimate the partner’s goal to enhance their movements. Nat Hum Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1038/s41562-017-0054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Sawers A, Bhattacharjee T, McKay JL, Hackney ME, Kemp CC, Ting LH. Small forces that differ with prior motor experience can communicate movement goals during human-human physical interaction. J Neuroeng Rehabil 2017; 14:8. [PMID: 28143521 PMCID: PMC5282658 DOI: 10.1186/s12984-017-0217-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2016] [Accepted: 01/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Physical interactions between two people are ubiquitous in our daily lives, and an integral part of many forms of rehabilitation. However, few studies have investigated forces arising from physical interactions between humans during a cooperative motor task, particularly during overground movements. As such, the direction and magnitude of interaction forces between two human partners, how those forces are used to communicate movement goals, and whether they change with motor experience remains unknown. A better understanding of how cooperative physical interactions are achieved in healthy individuals of different skill levels is a first step toward understanding principles of physical interactions that could be applied to robotic devices for motor assistance and rehabilitation. Methods Interaction forces between expert and novice partner dancers were recorded while performing a forward-backward partnered stepping task with assigned “leader” and “follower” roles. Their position was recorded using motion capture. The magnitude and direction of the interaction forces were analyzed and compared across groups (i.e. expert-expert, expert-novice, and novice-novice) and across movement phases (i.e. forward, backward, change of direction). Results All dyads were able to perform the partnered stepping task with some level of proficiency. Relatively small interaction forces (10–30N) were observed across all dyads, but were significantly larger among expert-expert dyads. Interaction forces were also found to be significantly different across movement phases. However, interaction force magnitude did not change as whole-body synchronization between partners improved across trials. Conclusions Relatively small interaction forces may communicate movement goals (i.e. “what to do and when to do it”) between human partners during cooperative physical interactions. Moreover, these small interactions forces vary with prior motor experience, and may act primarily as guiding cues that convey information about movement goals rather than providing physical assistance. This suggests that robots may be able to provide meaningful physical interactions for rehabilitation using relatively small force levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Sawers
- Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Tapomayukh Bhattacharjee
- W.H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, 1760 Haygood Drive Suite W 200, Atlanta, GA, 30322-4250, USA
| | - J Lucas McKay
- W.H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, 1760 Haygood Drive Suite W 200, Atlanta, GA, 30322-4250, USA
| | - Madeleine E Hackney
- Atlanta VA Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Atlanta, GA, 30033, USA.,Department of Medicine, Division of General Medicine and Geriatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA
| | - Charles C Kemp
- W.H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, 1760 Haygood Drive Suite W 200, Atlanta, GA, 30322-4250, USA
| | - Lena H Ting
- W.H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, 1760 Haygood Drive Suite W 200, Atlanta, GA, 30322-4250, USA. .,Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Division of Physical Therapy, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.
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Abstract
Parents can effortlessly assist their child to walk, but the mechanism behind such physical coordination is still unknown. Studies have suggested that physical coordination is achieved by interacting humans who update their movement or motion plan in response to the partner's behaviour. Here, we tested rigidly coupled pairs in a joint reaching task to observe such changes in the partners' motion plans. However, the joint reaching movements were surprisingly consistent across different trials. A computational model that we developed demonstrated that the two partners had a distinct motion plan, which did not change with time. These results suggest that rigidly coupled pairs accomplish joint reaching movements by relying on a pre-programmed motion plan that is independent of the partner's behaviour.
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