... Ultrafast Elastic potential energy Spring kinetic energy Catapult Power amplification U.S. Army Research Laboratory http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100006754 Army Research Office http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100000183 W911NF-15-1-0358 National Science Foundation http...

...Henry C. Astley; Thomas J. Roberts Many animals use catapult mechanisms to produce extremely rapid movements for escape or prey capture, resulting in power outputs far beyond the limits of muscle. In these catapults, muscle contraction loads elastic structures, which then recoil to release...

... before touch-down of the leading leg. Other research suggests that work done by the ankle extensors provides kinetic energy for the initiation of swing. Also, muscle work is suggested to power a catapult-like action in late stance of human walking. However, there is a lack of knowledge about...

... duration of the upper part when the force is lower than body weight. As in a catapult, muscle–tendon units are stretched more slowly during the brake at the beginning of stance and shorten more rapidly during the push at the end of stance. We suggest that the catapult-like mechanism of backward running...