DARPA recognizes that insect-scale flying robots have immense military potential.
In laboratories around the world, engineers are racing to shrink robotics into microscopic proportions, many examples of which take the form of small animals. Inspired by the design and locomotion of insects, fish, and other small creatures, these machines are not merely curiosities or pet projects, but rather, serious projects with military applications. That’s why agencies like DARPA, with a long history of secretive, heavily-funded, high-risk, high-reward programs, have been investing in microrobots as a prospective next-generation tool with military applications.
Fly on the Wall
One animal-inspired micro robot is the RoboBee, a device weighing less than a tenth of a gram, developed at Harvard’s Wyss Institute. The RoboBee’s wings beat hundreds of times per second—much like a real insect—thanks to piezoelectric actuators that convert electrical energy into tiny wing flaps.
DARPA supported early work in the microrobotic field, understanding that insect-scale flying robots had immense military potential. Consider the access unlocked through a reconnaissance platform small enough to go nearly anywhere, where even other relatively small drones cannot. Something like the RoboBee could be operated in isolation, or as a swarm, entering places inaccessible to humans, like collapsed buildings. Or the technology could be used to perch unnoticed, blending like an insect, all the while collecting sensitive intelligence.
Of course, the technical challenges of fielding such microscopic robots are significant. Power supplies and autonomous control at such a small scale are notoriously difficult operations. Yet, prototypes have proven the concept, demonstrating lifelike agility, suggesting it’s only a matter of time before fly-sized robots are ready for the field (assuming DARPA and others haven’t already perfected and fielded the technology in secret).
Fish in the Sea
Underwater microrobots are being developed, too—drawing inspiration from fish and jellyfish. The jellyfish example is especially curious; long admired for efficient propulsion, engineers are working to perfect soft robots that can swim silently, like a jellyfish. One example is the robo-jelly, developed with Office of Naval Research and DARPA support. The robo-jelly features artificial muscles that contract in response to hydrogen and oxygen fuel, mimicking the pulsations of a real jellyfish. The applications here are obvious—a stealthy surveillance tool capable of monitoring the oceans, enemy ports, and coastlines, all without disturbing wildlife or alerting nearby humans.
Cockroach on the Land
At UC Berkeley, the DASH (Dynamic Autonomous Sprawled Hexapod) robot resembles the hard-to-kill cockroach. The inspiration point was obvious: the cockroach is one of the hardest and most resilient examples of biology, with immense practical applications. Capable of moving across the floor in the quick, scrambling gait of the rent-reducing hexapod insect, the DASH has shown resistance to crushing forces, an enviable trait in war zones or post-disaster search operations.
And Something Else
The most radical, and concerning, DARPA concept relating to animal-inspired micro robotics is the cyborg insect—which is exactly what it sounds like: insects implanted with microcontrollers. It’s true. Rather than build a machine from scratch that mimicked a biological system, researchers experimented with implanting the microcontrollers into moth pupae or beetles, allowing the adults to emerge with electronics integrated into their bodies. Then, electrical stimulation of flight muscles or antennae could steer the living insect, creating a hybrid platform—part robot, part organic insect.
Obviously, the cyborg insect concept raises complex ethical questions.
About the Author: Harrison Kass
Harrison Kass is a senior defense and national security writer at The National Interest. Kass is an attorney and former political candidate who joined the US Air Force as a pilot trainee before being medically discharged. He focuses on military strategy, aerospace, and global security affairs. He holds a JD from the University of Oregon and a master’s in Global Journalism and International Relations from NYU.
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