Professor Barani Raman at Washington University in St. Louis has been leading research on using locusts in order to develop a biorobotic sensing system to be used for homeland security applications. With the use of a surgically inserted micro-electrode and sensing chip, locust brain activity can be measured and potentially controlled. Eventually these locusts may be used to identify the presence of explosives, but before they can be used in real world applications their biological control system must be studied. By monitoring the locust’s brain activity during controlled flight, a way to guide and navigate the locusts remotely may be developed.
This project was initially designed to provide Dr. Raman and his research with a drone capable of stable, repeatable flights for experiments. The project was defined to feature a platform to carry the locust and sensors to collect brain signals from the locust when subject to positive and negative stimulus via odor plumes along various flight paths. This is still the goal, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic many of the in-lab objectives were moved to simulations and data collection will have to be conducted beyond the deadline of this project by Dr. Raman’s team. Using the results from this project, Professor Raman and his research team will be able to map the locust’s brain signals to motor inputs for controlling the drone. Doing so will assist in identifying the biological control system of the locust and eventually controlling the locust remotely.