Control of grip force and vertical posture while holding an object and being perturbed

We investigated motor control perspectives of coordinating maintenance of posture and application of grip force when holding an object and being perturbed. Ten subjects stood on the force platform holding an instrumented object in their dominant hand and were exposed to an external perturbation applied to their shoulders. Task demands were manipulated by positioning a slippery cap on top of the instrumented object. Grip force applied to the object, the object acceleration and the center of pressure (COP) were recorded and analyzed during the time intervals typical for the anticipatory (APA) and compensatory (CPA) components of postural control. Onsets of grip force were seen before the onsets of the COP displacement and initiation of movements of the handheld object during the APA phase of postural control, while the onsets of maximum grip force preceded the maximum COP displacement during the CPA phase. When the task demands increased by holding a handheld object with the slippery cap, subjects tended to generate grip force earlier and of a smaller magnitude; also, the COP displacement in the APA phase was smaller as compared to holding a handheld object only. The outcome provides a foundation for future studies of maintenance of vertical posture in people with impairments of balance and grip force control when holding an object and being perturbed.