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Scaling of inertial delays in terrestrial mammals
Fig 2
Swing task.
The model represents repositioning of the swing leg as part of the response to a trip. (a) We modeled the swing task as a distributed mass pendulum actuated by muscle torque Tmusc. Our model incorporates the distance from the pendulum pivot to limb center of mass (LCOM), mass of the limb (Mlimb), and moment of inertia of the forelimb about the shoulder joint (MOI). (b) Angle (θ), angular velocity (
), and torque (Tmusc) profiles in the swing task for a one kg animal for a 30 degree movement, the movement magnitude for which inertial delay equals sensorimotor delay in a one kg animal. (c) Variation in coefficient a and exponent b of the power law for inertial delay from numerical simulations with movement magnitude (dark blue), sensorimotor delay (dark green), and theoretical predictions for the inertial delay exponent based on scaling of muscle force with cross-sectional area ∝M2/3 (thick dashed line) and dynamic similarity ∝M1 (thin dashed line).
doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0217188.g002