Spatial patterns in the control of human arm movement.

Abstract

Generalized Procrustes analysis was used to investigate the spatial paths of pointing movements. In Experiment 1, 3 participants produced similar spatial paths of the hand when repeating a pointing movement many times, despite variability in the position and orientation of the movements. The average spatial path indicates a fundamental spatial pattern of the motor system, or motor primitive. This pattern varied across the workspace. Anterioposterior movements were straight, but repeated movements had variable spatial patterns. Lateral movements were curved away from the body but had regular spatial patterns. Experiment 2 extended these results to movements of different amplitudes in 7 participants. The motor primitive seems to be abandoned at the end of the movement in favor of final adjustments to bring the hand to the target position. In Experiment 3, the same participants produced similar motor primitives both with and without vision.