Corollary Discharge and Oculomotor Proprioception: Two Mechanisms for Spatially Accurate Perception and Action

Abstract

Our eyes are in constant motion, therefore, so we cannot
solely use retinal information to determine the location of objects
in space. Our ability to maintain a stable representation of the world
despite a constantly moving eye is a phenomenon that has yet to be fully
explained. However, two different mechanisms have been proposed as
possible solutions. First, a corollary discharge of the eyes’ motor command
as the eyes move about, was proposed by Herman von Helmholtz.
On the other hand, a spatial representation via proprioceptive signals
from nerve endings of eye muscles was proposed by Sir Charles Sherrington.
We hypothesize that both mechanisms are used by the brain to
achieve spatial accuracy and we present experimental results that support
both ideas. While corollary discharge remaps the spatial representation
even before an impeding saccade, oculomotor proprioception
establishes an accurate spatial representation well after the saccade.