Biol. Bull. Sign up for etocs!
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (3)
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Macmillan, D. L.
Right arrow Articles by Patullo, B. W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Macmillan, D. L.
Right arrow Articles by Patullo, B. W.
Related Collections
Right arrow Neuroscience
Right arrow Behavior
Right arrow Crustaceans
Biol. Bull. 200: 201-205. (April 2001)
© 2001 Marine Biological Laboratory

Insights for Robotic Design From Studies of the Control of Abdominal Position in Crayfish

David L. Macmillan* and Blair W. Patullo

Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: dlmacm{at}unimelb.edu.au.

Studies of the control of position and movement of the abdomen of crayfish illustrate a number of features of invertebrate sensory-motor systems that have implications for their use to inform robotic design. We use the abdominal slow extensor motor system to illustrate three of them here: first, the way in which a behaviorally flexible length-servo device can be achieved with very few elements; second, the importance of knowledge of the biological and behavioral context in which the elements operate; third, that design solutions resulting from natural selection have been constrained by the previous evolutionary history of the animal, which can affect the outcomes in ways that may not be immediately apparent in a design context.

Abbreviations: ACC, accessory motor neuron • MRO, muscle receptor organ • SEMN, slow extensor motor neuron • SR, stretch receptor




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Biol. Bull.Home page
D. E. J. Blazis and F. W. Grasso
Introduction
Biol. Bull., April 1, 2001; 200(2): 147 - 149.
[Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 2001 by the Marine Biological Laboratory.