How cat lands: insights into contribution of the forelimbs and hindlimbs to attenuating impact force

Zhang, Zhiqiang; Yu, Hui; Yang, Jinling; Wang, Lili; Yang, Liming

doi:10.1007/s11434-014-0328-0

Cited by 19 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Cats are generally acknowledged to have excellent athletic ability, especially in jumping, achieved through natural selection. When striking the ground, they can land smoothly, without any injury, though they are subjected to large impact forces, as high as several times their body weight [1, 2]. It is believed that the paw pads play a protective and load-bearing role during landing since they are the only body parts that touch the ground.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comprehensive Biomechanism of Impact Resistance in the Cat’s Paw Pad

Pei

et al. 2019

BioMed Research International

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Cats are able to jump from a high-rise without any sign of injury, which is attributed in large part to their impact-resistant paw pads. The biomechanical study of paw pads may therefore contribute to improving the impact resistance of specific biomimetic materials. The present study is aimed at investigating the mechanics of the paw pads, revealing their impact-resistant biomechanism from macro- and microscopic perspectives. Histological and micro-CT scanning methods were exploited to analyze the microstructure of the pads, and mechanical testing was conducted to observe the macroscopic mechanical properties at different loading frequencies. Numerical micromodels of the ellipsoidal and cylindrical adipose compartments were developed to evaluate the mechanical functionality as compressive actions. The results show that the stiffness of the pad increases roughly in proportion to strain and mechanical properties are almost impervious to strain rate. Furthermore, the adipose compartment, which comprises adipose tissue enclosed within collagen septa, in the subcutaneous tissue presents an ellipsoid-like structure, with a decreasing area from the middle to the two ends. Additionally, the finite element results show that the ellipsoidal structure has larger displacement in the early stage of impact, which can absorb more energy and prevent instability at touchdown, while the cylindrical structure is more resistant to deformation. Moreover, the Von Mises of the ellipsoidal compartment decrease gradually from both ends to the middle, making it change to a cylindrical shape, and this may be the reason why the macroscopic stiffness increases with increasing time after contact. This preliminary investigation represents the basis for biomechanical interpretation and can accordingly provide new inspirations of shock-absorbing composite materials in engineering.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comprehensive Biomechanism of Impact Resistance in the Cat’s Paw Pad

Pei

et al. 2019

BioMed Research International

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“…In this study, we investigated only the distribution of the vertical ground reaction forces (VGRFs) between the limb joints, as the forces in the mediolateral and fore-aft directions are small enough to be ignored [12]. In order to accurately compare the energy absorption of the forelimbs and hindlimbs, a single MatScan (150 Hz; Texscan Inc., South Boston, MA, USA) was used to select and measure only the VGRFs of the right fore (RF) and right hind (RH) limbs from the impact on the mat.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, a study on reflexes in cat ankle muscles indicates that large and rapid reflexes indeed occur during landing and the lengths of the ankle extensors begin to increase only after the toes have developed significant dorsal flexion [11]. Additionally, the manner of distribution of impact forces between the forelimbs and hindlimbs of cats has been found to be related to the jump height, and the hindlimbs have been found to play an increasing role in the absorption of energy with increasing jump height [12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contributions of Limb Joints to Energy Absorption during Landing in Cats

Pei

et al. 2019

Applied Bionics and Biomechanics

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There is a high risk of serious injury to the lower limbs in a human drop landing. However, cats are able to jump from the same heights without any sign of injury, which is attributed to the excellent performance of their limbs in attenuating the impact forces. The bionic study of the falling cat landing may therefore contribute to improve the landing-shock absorbing ability of lower limbs in humans. However, the contributions of cat limb joints to energy absorption remain unknown. Accordingly, a motion capture system and plantar pressure measurement platform were used to measure the joint angles and vertical ground reaction forces of jumping cats, respectively. Based on the inverse dynamics, the joint angular velocities, moments, powers, and work from different landing heights were calculated to expound the synergistic mechanism and the dominant muscle groups of cat limb joints. The results show that the buffering durations of the forelimbs exhibit no significant difference with increasing height while the hindlimbs play a greater role than the forelimbs in absorbing energy when jumping from a higher platform. Furthermore, the joint angles and angular velocities exhibit similar variations, indicating that a generalized motor program can be adopted to activate limb joints for different landing heights. Additionally, the elbow and hip are recognized as major contributors to energy absorption during landing. This experimental study can accordingly provide biological inspiration for new approaches to prevent human lower limb injuries.

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“…Cats are known to be able to fall tens of meters through the air without being hurt [57,58]. As shown in Figure 11a, cats have three leg bones that allow them to adjust their posture flexibly during a fall to minimize damage.…”

Section: Bionic Devices Based On Animal Legmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Bioinspired Vibration Control Technology

et al. 2021

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Due to huge demand in engineering, vibration control technology and related studies have always been at the frontiers of research. Although traditional vibration control methods are stable and reliable, they have obvious shortcomings. Through evolution and natural selection, certain body-parts of animals in the natural world have been cleverly constructed and well designed. This provides a steady stream of inspiration for the design of vibration control equipment. The prime objective of this review is to highlight recent advances in the bionic design of vibration control devices. Current bionic vibration control devices were classified, and their bionic principles were briefly described. One kind was the bionic device based on the brain structure of the woodpecker, which is mostly used to reduce vibration at high frequencies. Another kind of bionic device was based on animal leg structure and showed outstanding performance in low frequency vibration reduction. Finally, we briefly listed the problems that need to be solved in current bionic vibration control technology and gave recommendations for future research direction.

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How cat lands: insights into contribution of the forelimbs and hindlimbs to attenuating impact force

Cited by 19 publications

References 25 publications

Comprehensive Biomechanism of Impact Resistance in the Cat’s Paw Pad

Comprehensive Biomechanism of Impact Resistance in the Cat’s Paw Pad

Contributions of Limb Joints to Energy Absorption during Landing in Cats

A Review of Bioinspired Vibration Control Technology

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