Publications of Dr. Jan Cocatre-Zilgien

Patents

I wrote and submitted these patents without an attorney, which took significant work. Was it a total loss of time? No. Writing a patent requires a precise focus on what you want to do, and this was invaluable. If you cannot write your idea on the back of a postage stamp, it means that idea is too fuzzy. When one of my brothers heard I got a patent, he confided he always wanted to develop a kite with LEDs to fly in the coastal evening breezes. This sounded really great; however, a quick search revealed there were already 10 of those patented, so it is not that easy to come up with something new. Especially new and useful!

Cocatre-Zilgien, J.H. (2000) "Aircraft system monitoring air humidity to locate updrafts" U.S. Patent 6,012,675 issued January 11, 2000 [USPTO full text] [images].
Cocatre-Zilgien, J.H. (1998) "Skin temperature radio telemetry and alarms", U.S. Patent 5,844,862 issued December 1, 1998. [USPTO full text] [images].
[Special detailed section on how to make your own]
Cocatre-Zilgien, J.H. (1998) "Hinged kink valve", U.S. Patent 5,707,038 issued January 13, 1998. [USPTO full text] [images].
Cocatre-Zilgien, J.H. (1997) "Walking machine with backhoe legs", applied February 21, 1997, [abstract] [full text and images] abandoned May 24, 1999, losing the battle with US Patent Office.

To view the all-important USPTO patent images, see How to View Patent TIFF Images, or click on the [images] above to show them in a new window

Peer-Reviewed Publications

These papers date from my UIUC years working mostly on, ahem, ...cockroaches, more precisely Periplaneta americana. I gained a lot of respect for them, and I would hate to have to smash one of these critters in some cheap Florida motel. The most surprising to me is that these insects have personalities just like humans; the bully on top of the water jar, the limping one in the corner, and the touchy-feely one who always wants to be in contact with others. Over the years work evolved from "wet" neurobiology towards modeling and simulation of neuron, muscle, leg, and whole-insect dynamics.

Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1999). Modeling stress and strain in an insect leg for simulation of campaniform sensilla responses to external forces. Biol. Cybern. 81:149-160. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H., Delcomyn F., and Hart J.M. (1996). Performance of a muscle-like "leaky" pneumatic actuator powered by modulated air pulses. J. Robot. Syst. 13(6):379-390. [abstract]
Delcomyn F., Nelson M.E., and Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. (1996). Sense organs of insect legs and the selection of sensors for agile walking robots. Int. J. Robot. Res. 15(2):113-127. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H., Delcomyn F., Hall L.V., and Pijanowski, G.J. (1995). An approach to validation of a leg simulation by the comparison of two dynamic models. Comput. Biol. Med. 25(3):309-319. [abstract]
To do your own simulation, here are the Leg Sign Conventions and Dynamics Equations.
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1995). Computer simulation of campaniform sensilla activity in an insect leg. In M. Burrows et al. (Eds.). Nervous Systems and Behavior. Proc. 4th Int. Congr. Neuroethology (Cambridge, England). New York:Georg Thieme Verlag. p. 448. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1993). A new method for depicting animal step patterns. Anim. Behav. 45:820-824.
Delcomyn F. & Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. (1992). Computer method for identifying bursts in trains of spikes. In P.M. Conn (Ed.) Methods in Neuroscience 10. San Diego: Academic Press. p.229-240.
Delcomyn F. & Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. (1992). Identifications of spikes by computer. In P.M. Conn (Ed.) Methods in Neuroscience 10. San Diego: Academic Press. p.217-228.
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1992). Identification of bursts in spike trains. J. Neurosci. Meth. 41:19-30. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1990). Fast axon activity and the motor pattern in cockroach legs during swimming. Physiol. Entomol. 15:385-392. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1990). A slope-based approach to spike discrimination in digitized data. J. Neurosci. Meth. 33:241-249. [abstract]
Delcomyn F. & Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. (1988). Individual differences and variability in the timing of motor activity during walking in insects. Biol. Cybern. 59:379-384. [abstract]
Cocatre-Zilgien J.H. & Delcomyn F. (1988). Empirical evaluation of two-sample statistical tests for differences of stepping phase during insect walking. Biol. Cybern. 59:367-377. [abstract]

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