# SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL CONTROL OF TARGETED LIMB MOVEMENTS

> **NIH NIH R01** · GOOD SAMARITAN HOSP & MED CTR(PRTLND,OR) · 1990 · $133,791

## Abstract

The long-term goal of this renewal application is to determine how the
nervous system uses kinesthetic input to control targeted limb movement.
Two problems with past research in this area of motor control are:  1)
researchers lack a conceptual framework from which to answer questions
about kinesthetic control and 2) new experimental techniques are needed to
answer these questions.  The proposed experiments will empirically test a
conceptual framework in which the nervous system uses kinesthetic input
initially to establish and then to adjust 3 spatial and temporal movement
parameters:  distance, timing, and direction.  These experiments will also
develop 2 experimental techniques to answer questions about kinesthetic
control:  tendon vibration in humans and central neural recording in
behaving monkeys.

Four specific aims in this grant application address the need for a
conceptual framework and new experimental techniques.  Specific Aim 1 is to
determine in human subjects whether the distance a joint rotates to a
target depends on kinesthetic input about the initial joint angle.
Specific Aim 2 is to determine in human subjects how kinesthetic input
controls the onset timing of joint rotations in movement sequences.
Specific Aim 3 is to determine in monkey subjects how kinesthetic input
controls the direction of a hand movement at both the behavioral and the
neural levels.  Specific Aim 4 is to develop the technique of tendon
vibration in human subjects so this technique can be used to activate
muscle receptors in a predictable, quantitative manner.

By testing this conceptual framework and by developing these experimental
techniques, we can begin to answer some fundamental questions about the
kinesthetic control of targeted limb movements that were previously beyond
reach.  These answers will provide valuable insights into more applied
problems of motor control in areas such as motor development and aging,
motor disorders, myoelectrical prostheses, and motor control by astronauts
in outer space.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3155949
- **Project number:** 2R01AR031017-07
- **Recipient organization:** GOOD SAMARITAN HOSP & MED CTR(PRTLND,OR)
- **Principal Investigator:** PAUL J. CORDO
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1990
- **Award amount:** $133,791
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 1983-12-01 → 1994-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3155949

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3155949, SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL CONTROL OF TARGETED LIMB MOVEMENTS (2R01AR031017-07). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-24 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3155949. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*