Researchers have developed a groundbreaking invention inspired by insects: a smartphone-controlled, lightweight camera that can be mounted on the back of beetles or small robots. The camera mimics the energy-efficient visual perception of insects and offers a panoramic view from the beetle’s perspective.
Insects are known for their energy-efficient visual perception, often using head-swiveling behavior instead of moving their entire bodies to scan their surroundings. Building on this mechanism, researchers have created a tiny camera system weighing just 248 milligrams. When mounted on a beetle’s back, the camera can stream close-to-real-time video and pivot, providing a beetle’s-eye view.
The camera’s potential goes beyond beetles, as it can be attached to insect-scale robots. By moving the camera arm instead of their entire body, these robots consume up to 84 times less energy. This advancement opens up possibilities for efficient insect-inspired robots in various applications.
The camera system represents one of the smallest self-powering vision systems ever created. It is wireless, power-autonomous, and mechanically steerable, emulating insect head motion. Its potential applications are extensive.
The researchers chose not to use miniaturized smartphone cameras due to their processing and energy requirements. Instead, they turned to insects and studied how they optimize their visual systems for energy efficiency. Insects allocate a significant portion of their body mass and energy to their visual systems, even with lower resolution than humans. The ability to move their visual systems independently of their bodies allows insects to gather more visual information while conserving energy.
The tiny camera system incorporates an ultraminiature piezoelectric cantilever actuator and a microfabricated lever arm for steering. This mechanism provides higher image resolution and consumes less power compared to wide-angle lenses. The camera can be wirelessly controlled through a smartphone, offering a beetle’s-eye view. It has already been mounted on live beetles, enabling the study of insect behavior in their natural habitats.
This revolutionary technology has the potential to revolutionize robotics and insect behavior studies. It offers remarkable energy efficiency and smartphone control, pushing the boundaries of what is possible in the field.
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