Distinct behavior of the little finger during the vertical translation of an unsteady thumb platform while grasping

Abstract

Object stabilization while grasping is a common topic of research in motor control and robotics. Forces produced by the peripheral fingers (index and little) play a crucial role in sustaining the rotational equilibrium of a handheld object. In this study, we examined the contribution of the peripheral fingers towards object stabilization when the rotational equilibrium is disturbed. For this purpose, the thumb was placed over an unsteady platform and vertically translated. The task was to trace a trapezoid or an inverted trapezoid pattern by moving the thumb platform in the vertical direction. The thumb displacement data served as visual feedback to trace the pattern displayed. Participants were instructed to maintain the handle in static equilibrium at all times. We observed that the change in the normal force of the little finger due to the downward translation of the thumb was significantly greater than the change in the normal force of the index finger due to the upward translation. We speculate that morphological correlations (between thumb and little finger) during the displacement of the thumb might be a reason for such large increases in the little finger forces.