Recent Developments in the Remote Radio Control of Insect Flight

Hirotaka Sato, Michel M. Maharbiz
2010 Frontiers in Neuroscience  
The continuing miniaturization of digital circuits and the development of low power radio systems coupled with continuing studies into the neurophysiology and dynamics of insect flight are enabling a new class of implantable interfaces capable of controlling insects in free flight for extended periods. We provide context for these developments, review the state-of-the-art and discuss future directions in this field. Keywords: insect flight, micro air vehicle (MAV), telemetry, cyborg insect,
more » ... n machine interface (BMI) MoVIe S3 | This movie shows remote elevation control of a free-flying Mecynorhina torquata. An RF receiver for wireless communication was mounted on the beetle. Wireless commands instructed the microcontroller to apply stimuli to the brain (Sato et al., 2009a,b), which caused the beetle to lose altitude. Once the command was removed, the beetle returns to normal flight and regains altitude. A blue LED blinked whenever the microcontroller received a command sent by remote operator. Reproduced from Sato et al. (2009b) . MoVIe S4 | This movie shows remote turn control of free-flying Mecynorhina torquata. An RF receiver for wireless communication was mounted on the beetle. After the RF receiver accepted a command to apply stimulus pulse trains to either left or right basalar muscle, the beetle turned. Red, green and yellow LED indicators were placed on the ground to show when the remote operator commanded the optic lobe (flight initiation), right basalar (left turn) and left basalar (right turn) muscle stimulations, respectively. Reproduced from Sato et al. (2009b) .
doi:10.3389/fnins.2010.00199 pmid:21629761 pmcid:PMC3100638 fatcat:2qnyuakt3nfh3c6te2pwzovw5q