title: Optimizing Populations of SAI Tactile Mechanoreceptors to Enable Activities of Daily Living.
abstract: At present, the dense network of peripheral afferents between finger and brain and the large size of engineered sensors preclude the recreation of biologically observed afferent populations. This work uses a validated computational model of cutaneous skin and tactile afferents to evaluate sparse populations in performing tasks required in activities of daily living. Using a model (3D finite element representation of fingertip skin, linear bi-phasic transduction function, and leaky-integrate-and-fire neuronal model), we systematically varied populations of tactile receptors in dimensions of density (100, 45, 20, and 10 sensors/cm(2)) and size (diameter 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, and 1.0 mm) to determine if a given modeled population can discriminate spheres and cylinders representative of objects used in activities of daily living. Using a scoring system which allows for direct comparisons between the populations, our results indicate that a population must have at least 20 sensors per cm(2) to maintain response resolution in these activities of daily living and that larger-sized sensors do not degrade response resolution.
authors.affiliation: Department of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904.
authors.forename: Isabelle I
authors.initials: II
authors.lastname: Rivest
authors.forename: Gregory J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Gerling