Insbot

Insbot is a robotic cockroach developed in 2002 by scientists of the European project LEURRE. It is designed to trick real cockroaches into following its lead, with the goal of finding ways of adapting their behavior as a means of natural pest control. At first, Insbot's predecessor, Alice robot, faced some setbacks due to its size and its inability to properly recognize the cockroaches. But after a series of tests, this newer model was developed. It contains more sensors and computational power, which allows it to interact with the cockroaches more efficiently.

Insbot is a robotic cockroach developed in 2002 by scientists of the European project LEURRE. It is designed to trick real cockroaches into following its lead, with the goal of finding ways of adapting their behavior as a means of natural pest control. At first, Insbot's predecessor, Alice robot, faced some setbacks due to its size and its inability to properly recognize the cockroaches. But after a series of tests, this newer model was developed. It contains more sensors and computational power, which allows it to interact with the cockroaches more efficiently. == How it works== The Insbot is composed of two different types of sensors, IR and chemical, and linear cameras. The sensors help the robot maneuver itself and identify other cockroaches. One recent challenge was to find a way to add pheromones to the robot which would allow it to communicate and build trust with the other cockroaches. With the help of chemical sensors, the robot is able to emit the cockroach chemical signal that is present on the surface of cockroaches. With these sensors, the robot attracts the other cockroaches. If it does not have them, it scares them away because the cockroaches think it is a predator. The IR sensors are used to measure proximity, which is important because the robot's behavior is controlled by proximity information. All of its movements and actions depend on where it is and what surrounds it. The IR sensors are also used to distinguish between another cockroach and an obstacle. A sensor is placed on the top of the robot and is activated when it is near an obstacle. Two more sensors are placed at the bottom of the robot and are activated when it is near other cockroaches. The robot contains linear cameras which are used to identify objects or other cockroaches which are out of the reach of the IR sensors. It identifies dark spots to be a group of cockroaches. With all of these components, Insbot is able to analyze the movements and behaviors of the cockroaches and mimic them.

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1331438134 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.