A computational model of anterior intraparietal (AIP) neurons

The monkey parietal anterior intraparietal area (AIP) is part of the grasp planning and execution circuit which contains neurons that encode object features relevant for grasping, such as the width and the height. In this study we focus on the formation of AIP neurons during grasp development. We propose and implement a neural network structure and a learning mechanism that is driven by successful grasp experiences during early grasp development. The simulations show that learning leads to emergence of units that have similar response properties as the AIP visual-dominant neurons. The results may have certain implications for the function of AIP neurons and thus should stimulate new experiments that cannot only verify/falsify the model but also advance our understanding of the visuomotor learning mechanisms employed by the primate brain. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.