We have reported that characteristic discharge patterns were observed in the antagonistic biarticular muscles in lower limbs during the early stance phase of normal gait; the medial hamstrings (Mh) ceased and the rectus femoris (Rf) increased electrical activities about 30msec prior to the heel contact, whereas the mono-articular gluteus maximum (Gm) and vastus medialis (Vm) showed sustained activities in the same period. Recently, we have demonstrated that the tightly coordinating activity

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... erns among the antagonistic bi-articular as well as the mono-articular muscles contributed to the output force and direction control, the force/position control and the stiffness control of the endpoint of the two joint rink model, and have proposed the coordination control model. In the present experiments, we attempted to analyze the electrical activity patterns of the antagonistic bi-articular Mh and Rf and the monoarticular Gm and Vm during normal gait cycles. Subject employed were 35 healthy young adults. Results obtained here strongly suggested that the crisscross EMG patterns of the bi-articular Rf and Mh and sustained activities of the mono-ariticular Gm and Vm during the early stance phase in the human normal gait were caused by the changes in the output force direction. Handrails for entrance lobby level differences in dwellings: A study of handrails for use by the elderly during negotiation of level differences in dwellings, part 1