TECH

Insects are now spies

Scientists have long dreamed of seeing the world through the eyes of insects. This is not just curiosity, there is a great deal of practical interest in it. An insect with a camera can climb into any slot, which opens up great opportunities for video surveillance in previously inaccessible locations. This is useful for security officers and rescue workers, for whom information collection is saved. Finally, miniaturization and robotics go hand in hand, complementing each other.
A group of scientists at the University of Washington created a new camera system that is so small and light that it can sit on the back of a beetle. From there, the camera can be controlled wirelessly to focus on the desired objects and obtain streaming video to a smartphone connected via Bluetooth.
The resolution of the camera is quite modest and has 160 × 120 pixels in black and white. Recording speed from one to five frames per second. It is important to note that the camera is mounted on a rotating mechanism and can, on command, rotate left and right at an angle of up to 60 degrees. Insects, by the way, use the same principle. A small brain like a beetle or a fly cannot process a visual image with a wide angle of coverage; therefore, for a detailed study of an object of interest to them, an insect must constantly turn its head.

A full charge of the camera system battery lasts an hour or two continuous shooting modes. In the case of connecting an accelerometer that automatically turns on the camera only at the moment of a sharp change in the direction of the beetle's movement, the load lasts six hours of system operation. We add that the weight of the entire miniature platform with a camera and a rotating mechanism is 248 milligrams. The scientists also provided a camera similar to the insect-sized robotic mechanism they created. We are not talking about the commercial implementation of development. 

Credits: Mark Stone/University of Washington