A phase-locked loop model of the response of the postural control system to periodic platform motion

A phase-locked loop (PLL) model of the response of the postural control system to periodic platform motion is proposed. The PLL model is based on the hypothesis that quiet standing (QS) postural sway can be characterized as a weak sinusoidal oscillation corrupted with noise. Because the signal to noise ratio is quite low, the characteristics of the QS oscillator are not measured directly from the QS sway, instead they are inferred from the response of the oscillator to periodic motion of the platform. When a sinusoidal stimulus is applied, the QS oscillator changes speed as needed until its frequency matches that of the platform, thus achieving phase lock in a manner consistent with a PLL control mechanism. The PLL model is highly effective in representing the frequency, amplitude, and phase shift of the sinusoidal component of the phase-locked response over a range of platform frequencies and amplitudes. Qualitative analysis of the PLL control mechanism indicates that there is a finite range of frequencies over which phase lock is possible, and that the size of this capture range decreases with decreasing platform amplitude. The PLL model was tested experimentally using nine healthy subjects and the results reveal good agreement with a mean phase shift error of 13.7 degrees and a mean amplitude error of 0.8 mm.