The Visual Perception of Material Properties Affects Motor Planning in Prehension: An Analysis of Temporal and Spatial Components of Lifting Cups.

The current study examined the role of visually perceived material properties in motor planning, where we analyzed the temporal and spatial components of motor movements during a seated reaching task. We recorded hand movements of 14 participants in three dimensions while they lifted and transported paper cups that differed in weight and glossiness. Kinematic- and spatial analysis revealed speed-accuracy trade-offs to depend on visual material properties of the objects, in which participants reached slower and grabbed closer to the center of mass for stimuli that required to be handled with greater precision.