Japanese manufacturing "semi -mechanical cockroaches": in the future may execute search and rescue tasks

【Source: Nine Pai News】

If there is a earthquake in the near future, the survivors are trapped under the rubble, and the first one who may find them may be a group of cockroaches. This is a recent breakthrough research project in Japanese researchers. They tried to install the "backpack" of solar cells and electronic equipment on cockroaches, intending to "remotely control" their actions.

Professor Kenjiro Fukuda from the Riken Film Lab and his team developed an ultra -thin organic solar cell with a thickness of only 4 microns, about 1/25 of human hair, which can be installed on the abdomen of insects. While allowing cockroaches to move freely, solar batteries can also provide sufficient energy to process the direction signal it received and send it to the sensory organs of the back of the insect.

"The battery inside the small robot will be exhausted soon, so the exploration time is very short," said Professor Fukuda. "((This semi -mechanical cockroach) one key advantage is that insects can move by themselves, so there is no need for too much electricity."

This work is based on the insect control experiments before the Nanyang University of Technology in Singapore. Scientists have been trying to design semi -mechanical insects to help check the dangerous areas and monitor the environment, and to create a "robot insect" that is more effective than robots.

Professor Fukuda and his team chose to use Madagascar cockroaches for experiments. These cockroaches are about 6 cm (2.4 inches) long, enough to carry equipment, and there is no wings of the road. obstacle.

But the experiment has a long way to go. In a recent experiment, researchers used special computers and wireless Bluetooth signals "remote control" cockroaches to turn left, but when the correct signal was given, cockroaches turned around. The next challenge is to shrink the components so that the cockroaches can be moved easier and even installed with sensors and cameras.

In addition to semi -mechanical cockroaches, researchers are also looking forward to the widespread promotion of this solar cell thin film. This thin film consists of gold, silver, plastic and other materials. It can be embedded in clothes and even the skin, which can be used to monitor vital signs. According to Professor Fukuda, in the sunny days, the umbrella covered with this material can also provide sufficient power to charge the phone.

Jiupai News Intern reporter Cen Yuxin

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