ARC MSSH
ions | Bruxelles Woluwe, Louvain-la-Neuve
Integration of somatosensory submodalities for touch and grip (Multi-somatosensory haptics)
Internal reference number : 24/29-141
Start date : October 1st, 2024
End date : September 30, 2029
Partners
Principal Investigator (spokesperson) : Pr André Mouraux, Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Institute of Neuroscience (IoNS)
Co-Investigator 1: Pr Philippe Lefèvre, Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Institute for Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM)
Co-Investigator 2: Pr Benoît Delhaye, Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Institute for Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM)
Aims of the Coordinated Research Project
In this project, we aim at building a multimodal sensory stimulation and evaluation platform to uncover how somatosensory submodalities integrate during tactile exploration and haptic manipulation to generate coherent percepts and inform us about the external world. We will conduct a set of innovative studies which will rely on previously characterized illusions demonstrating the importance of the integration of tactile, thermal, and proprioceptive inputs in perception and action. More precisely, we will:
Use psychophysics to investigate the integration of tactile mechanosensory, thermosensory and proprioceptive inputs for the perception of the external world through tactile exploration.
Evaluate how motor control integrates these multimodal inputs and further investigate multisomatosensory illusions in the context of object manipulation.
Study the neural integration of mechanosensory and thermosensory inputs using electrophysiological techniques.
Develop an integrated finite element computational model of the fingertip combined with an integrate-and-fire model of sensory neurons to simulate the responses of both tactile mechanoreceptors and thermoreceptors of the skin.
The output of this research will enable a better understanding of the sense of touch in ecological context. It will have implications for the design of haptic interfaces and virtual reality setups that provide haptic feedback. Furthermore, it will provide critical knowledge for the design of hand neuroprostheses implementing combined tactile, thermal, and proprioceptive feedback to the user.
The research team
André Mouraux (IoNS, UCLouvain, spokesperson)
With a background in medicine and fundamental neuroscience, André is an expert in the domains of human thermonociception, touch, and haptic exploration. His work focuses on how pain and thermal sensations emerge from brain activity triggered by thermonociceptive input, and touch is perceived in conditions of active touch. In recent years, he has developed a novel approach to study the responses to thermonociceptive and tactile inputs using time-frequency analysis of EEG signals and the frequency tagging approach. The present project will take advantage of methods developed in the EU projects PROTOTOUCH (2013-2017) and MULTITOUCH (2019-2023).
Research group
People working on the project under other sources of funding: 1 research logistician, 1 computer engineer, 1 electrician
People funded by the project: 1 PhD student
Philippe Lefèvre (ICTEAM, UCLouvain)
Full Professor in biomedical engineering, Philippe Lefèvre has had a rich career during which he already supervised more than 30 PhD students and postdocs. His fields of interest include interaction between vision and neural control of movement, as well as biomechanics of finger-object interaction. Among other findings, Philippe made major contributions to the understanding of the role played by skin moisture and friction in dexterous manipulation. Also, his work was extremely important for studies of dexterous manipulation under altered gravity conditions.
Research group
People working on the project under other sources of funding: 2 PhD students, 2 technicians
People funded by the project: 1 PhD student
Benoît Delhaye (ICTEAM, UClouvain)
Touch has been the main topic of interest of Benoît Delhaye throughout his career. His journey began with a PhD in which he explored the biomechanics of touch. During his subsequent four-year postdoctoral training, he delved deeper into its underlying neurophysiology. Among his notable contributions, Benoît uncovered the critical role of partial slips in providing tactile feedback during manipulation. He also examined how various parameters of electrical nerve stimulation influence the characteristics of evoked tactile sensations.
Research group
People working on the project under other sources of funding: 2 PhD students
People funded by the project: 1 PhD student
The project is also supported by external collaborators: Professors David Gueorguiev (IoNS, UCLouvain) and Frédéric Crevecoeur (ICTEAM, UCLouvain), Research Director Rochelle Ackerley (Aix-Marseille University) and 2 postdocs Giulia Esposito (IoNS, UCLouvain) and Arthur Courtin (Aarhus University).
Theses defended in the context of the Coordinated Research Project
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Activities organised as part of the Coordinated Research Project
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Publications in connection with the Coordinated Research Project
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Contact
Professor André Mouraux, Principal Investigator (spokesperson/coordinator), Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Institute of Neuroscience (IoNS)
Email: andre.mouraux@uclouvain.be
Professor Benoît Delhaye, Co-Investigator, Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Institute for Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics (ICTEAM)
Email: benoit.delhaye@uclouvain.be