Comparison of natural and artificial control of movement

Control strategies in artificial and biological systems are compared and contrasted. Distinctions are made between open-loop control, finite-state control, and proportional feedback control, all of which are found in both artificial and neural systems. The question of whether, given the remarkable similarity in the structure of the sensorimotor rules governing the control of gait, neurophysiology should always be expected, to supply the best models for the design of artificial systems is addressed. It is concluded that technical constraints, particularly in the area of sensors, more often than not dictate the approach to the problem, so that what works in the neuromuscular system may not be practical in functional electrical stimulation or prosthetics