Cerebellar Control of Robot Arms

Abstract

Decades of research into the structure and function of the cerebellum have led to a clear understanding of many of its cells, as well as how learning takes place. Furthermore, there are many theories on what signals the cerebellum operates on, and how it works in concert with other parts of the nervous system. Nevertheless, the application of computational cerebellar models to the control of robot dynamics remains in its infant state. To date, a few applications have been realized, yet limited to the control of traditional robot structures which, strictly speaking, do not require adaptive control for the tasks that are performed since their dynamic structures are relatively simple. The currently emerging family of light-weight robots poses a new challenge to robot control: due to their complex dynamics traditional methods, depending on a full analysis of the dynamics of the system, are no longer applicable since the joints influence each other dynamics during movement. Can artificial cerebellar models compete here? In this overview paper we present a succinct introduction of the cerebellum, and discuss where it could be applied to tackle problems in robotics. Without conclusively answering the above question, an overview of several applications of cerebellar models to robot control is given.