A model of the neuro-musculo-skeletal system for human locomotion. I. Emergence of basic gait.

The generation of human locomotion was examined by linking computational neuroscience with biomechanics from the perspective of nonlinear dynamical theory. We constructed a model of human locomotion, which includes a musculo-skeletal system with 8 segments and 20 muscles, a neural rhythm generator composed of 7 pairs of neural oscillators, and mechanisms for processing and transporting sensory and motor signals. Using a computer simulation, we found that locomotion emerged as a stable limit cycle that was generated by the global entrainment between the musculo-skeletal system, the neural system, and the environment. Moreover, the walking movements of the model could be compared quantitatively with those of experimental studies in humans.