Speaker
Description
It is common for animals to use self-generated movements to actively sense the surrounding environment. For instance, rodents rhythmically move their whiskers to explore the space close to their body. The mouse whisker system has become a standard model for studying active sensing and sensorimotor integration through feedback loops. In this work, we developed a bioinspired spiking neural network model of the sensorimotor peripheral whisker system, modelling trigeminal ganglion, trigeminal nuclei, facial nuclei, and central pattern generator neuronal populations. This network was embedded in a virtual mouse robot, exploiting the Human Brain Project's Neurorobotics Platform, a simulation platform offering a virtual environment to develop and test robots driven by brain-inspired controllers. Eventually, the peripheral whisker system was adequately connected to an adaptive cerebellar network controller. The whole system was able to drive active whisking with learning capability, matching neural correlates of behaviour experimentally recorded in mice.
References
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.10.26.465919v1
Acknowledgements
This research received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Framework Program for Research and Innovation under the Specific Grant Agreement No. 785907 (Human Brain Project SGA2) and Specific Grant Agreement No. 945539 (Human Brain Project SGA3).
| Preferred form of presentation | Talk & (optional) poster |
|---|---|
| Topic area | models and applications |
| Keywords | Point neuron model, neurorobotic architecture, active whisking, Vibrissae, Trigeminal Ganglion, Trigeminal Nuclei, Facial Nuclei, CPG |
| Speaker time zone | UTC+2 |
| I agree to the copyright and license terms | Yes |
| I agree to the declaration of honor | Yes |
