How does surround inhibition help the nervous system locate a stimulus on the skin?

Surround inhibition is a critical physiological mechanism that allows the nervous system to achieve finer localization of stimuli on the skin.1

In this process, the area of the skin directly stimulated by a contact point excites a specific set of nerve fibers, while the surrounding regions of the receptive field exert an inhibitory effect on the neural response. By suppressing the activity in the areas immediately adjacent to the point of stimulation, the nervous system enhances the contrast between the excited area and its surroundings.12

This sharpening of discrimination is essential for the brain to distinguish between closely spaced stimuli, such as two distinct points of pressure, which might otherwise be perceived as a single, blurred sensation. By accentuating the boundaries of the stimulated region, surround inhibition provides the precision necessary for the nervous system to accurately map the location of tactile input on the body surface.132