Scientists Upgrade Cyborg Cockroaches into Hi-Tech Divers

Innovative research from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and Waseda University in Japan has transformed land-dwelling cyborg insects into amphibious bio-robots.

Led by Professor Hirotaka Sato, engineers have successfully outfitted Madagascar hissing cockroaches with miniature, wearable 3D-printed diving suits, allowing them to survive and navigate underwater for up to three hours.

Cyborg insects are living organisms fitted with tiny electronic backpacks that control their movement via electrical implants in their sensory organs. While previous iterations successfully demonstrated coordinated swarm movements on land, their utility was severely restricted in flooded environments, a common obstacle in disaster zones.

To overcome this, the researchers designed a lightweight, flexible resin suit that protects the cockroach’s abdominal breathing pores, known as spiracles. Rather than carrying heavy pressurised oxygen tanks, the suit utilises an integrated chemical generator. By mixing hydrogen peroxide and manganese dioxide over a small sponge, a catalytic reaction continuously produces fresh oxygen directly to the insect’s thoracic spiracles.

During testing, suit-wearing roaches successfully navigated submerged crevices up to 50 centimetres deep, moving at an impressive 78.4 millimetres per second underwater with no ill effects. Using living organisms solves the severe battery and energy constraints that plague entirely mechanical micro-robots, as the electronics only steer the insect while biology powers its movement.

While the primary goal remains search-and-rescue operations in collapsed tunnels and rubble, Sato envisions an extraterrestrial future. The team plans to test the suits against extreme temperatures and radiation, aiming to deploy cyborg swarms for low-oxygen planetary exploration on Mars.

Image Credit: Source