Abstract bee robot illustration. Image credit: mariananbu (CC0)
Hybrid insect-computer robots – an exciting fusion of biology and technology – herald a future of small, highly mobile and efficient devices. However, these robots require a way to control the movements of the insects, a task made complex due to the differences between different insects’ nervous and muscle systems.
To bridge this gap, Owaki, Dürr and Schmitz studied the relationship between electrical stimulation of three leg muscles in the legs of stick insects and the resultant torque. To do these experiments, the scientists kept the body of the stick insects fixed and electrically stimulated one out of three leg muscles to produce walking-like movements.
The results of these electrical stimulations allowed Owaki, Dürr and Schmitz to propose a model that predicts the torque created in the insect's joints when different patterns of electrical stimulation are applied to a leg muscle. The researchers identified a near-linear relationship between the duration of the electrical stimulus and the resultant torque. Moreover, the slope of this linear relationship can be estimated for individual animals with a few measurements only. This finding refines the precision of the motor control required to build individually tuned biohybrid robots.
Investigating the precise control of insect biohybrid robots, particularly using stick insects, can lead to advancements in biohybrid robotics and enrich our understanding of insect locomotion.
Owaki, Dürr and Schmitz’s insights could lead to the creation of adaptable and highly mobile devices with many applications, but key challenges need to be addressed. First, model testing must be implemented in free-walking insects, and the electrical stimuli must be refined to mimic natural neuromuscular signals more closely.
