title: An apparatus for characterization and control of isolated muscle.
abstract: An apparatus for characterization and control of muscle tissue is presented. The apparatus is capable of providing generalized mechanical boundary conditions to muscle tissue, as well as implementing real-time feedback control via electrical stimulation. The system is intended to serve as an experimental platform for implementing a wide variety of muscle control and identification studies that will serve as fundamental investigations of muscle mechanics, energetics, functional electrical stimulation, and fatigue. In one illustration of the capabilities of the apparatus, pilot experimental results of muscle workloops against a finite-admittance passive load are presented, illustrating how richer boundary conditions may reveal interesting muscle behavior.
authors.affiliation: Mechanical Engineering Department and The Media Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139, USA. wfarahat@mit.edu
authors.forename: Waleed
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Farahat
authors.forename: Hugh
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Herr
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004548:Elasticity; D004558:Electric Stimulation / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005246:Feedback / Q000502:physiology*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008954:Models, Biological; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology*; D010812:Physical Stimulation / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D010865:Pilot Projects; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*; D011894:Rana pipiens; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D014584:User-Computer Interface