Markkula, G orcid.org/0000-0003-0244-1582, Boer, E, Romano, R orcid.org/0000-0002-2132-4077 et al. (1 more author) (2018) Sustained sensorimotor control as intermittent decisions about prediction errors: computational framework and application to ground vehicle steering. Biological Cybernetics, 112 (3). pp. 181-207. ISSN 0340-1200
Abstract
A conceptual and computational framework is proposed for modelling of human sensorimotor control and is exemplified for the sensorimotor task of steering a car. The framework emphasises control intermittency and extends on existing models by suggesting that the nervous system implements intermittent control using a combination of (1) motor primitives, (2) prediction of sensory outcomes of motor actions, and (3) evidence accumulation of prediction errors. It is shown that approximate but useful sensory predictions in the intermittent control context can be constructed without detailed forward models, as a superposition of simple prediction primitives, resembling neurobiologically observed corollary discharges. The proposed mathematical framework allows straightforward extension to intermittent behaviour from existing one-dimensional continuous models in the linear control and ecological psychology traditions. Empirical data from a driving simulator are used in model-fitting analyses to test some of the framework’s main theoretical predictions: it is shown that human steering control, in routine lane-keeping and in a demanding near-limit task, is better described as a sequence of discrete stepwise control adjustments, than as continuous control. Results on the possible roles of sensory prediction in control adjustment amplitudes, and of evidence accumulation mechanisms in control onset timing, show trends that match the theoretical predictions; these warrant further investigation. The results for the accumulation-based model align with other recent literature, in a possibly converging case against the type of threshold mechanisms that are often assumed in existing models of intermittent control.
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Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2018, The Author(s). This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. |
Keywords: | Sensorimotor control; Motor primitive; Evidence accumulation; Sensory prediction; Corollary discharge; Steering |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > Institute for Transport Studies (Leeds) > ITS: Safety and Technology (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number EPSRC EP/J002933/1 EPSRC EP/K014145/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 02 Jan 2018 13:50 |
Last Modified: | 17 Apr 2019 07:49 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Verlag |
Identification Number: | 10.1007/s00422-017-0743-9 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:125570 |
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