Volume 10, Issue 3, May–June 2015, Pages 248–254
In Brief: Practice and Procedure
Developing biorobotics for veterinary research into cat movements
Abstract
Collaboration
between veterinarians and other professionals such as engineers and
computer scientists will become important in biorobotics for both
scientific achievements and the protection of animal welfare.
Particularly, cats have not yet become a significant source of
inspiration for new technologies in robotics. This article suggests a
novel approach for the investigation of particular aspects of cat
morphology, neurophysiology, and behavior aimed at bridging this gap by
focusing on the versatile, powerful locomotion abilities of cats and
implementing a robotic tool for the measurements of biological
parameters of animals and building cat-inspired robotic prototypes. The
presented framework suggests the basis for the development of novel
hypotheses and models describing biomechanics, locomotion, balancing
system, visual perception, as well as learning and adaption of cat motor
skills and behavior. In subsequent work, the resulting models will be
tested and evaluated in simulated and real experiments and validated
with specific experimental data gathered from cats. This methodology has
application in several areas including dynamic models and artificial
vision systems. From an ethical point of view, this approach is in line
with the 3R principles: the detailed and integrated systems will allow
us to study a small number of cats (reduction) for the implementation of
noninvasive tools such as electromyography and gaze analysis
(refinement), which will make the construction of a substitute to
experiments on living cats (replacement) easier. For instance,
bioinspired prototypes could be used to test how specific visual and
physical impairment in cats (up to partial or total blindness, loss of a
leg, and so forth) change their walking and jumping abilities. This
modus operandi may pave the way for a new generation of research in the
veterinary field. Moreover, the measurement tools to be developed will
constitute an achievement per se as for the first time visual, muscular,
and gait analysis of cats will be integrated, and this will help to
improve the rehabilitation procedures for cats and other nonhuman
animals.
Keywords
- 3Rs;
- biorobotics;
- cat;
- gait analysis;
- locomotion;
- noninvasive
Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
