Imagine a robot that can see, hear, and smell 10,000 times better than humans and computers. One would think this is impossible, but it is, in fact, completely plausible.
The human senses are limited and it is, for this reason, police and army personnel use trained sniffer dogs to detect drugs, bombs, and fugitives. The problem is that caring for and maintaining these animals is costly and time-consuming.
Enter the combination of science, technology, and biology - or rather, synthetic biology.
In a study published recently in the journal, Biosensor and Bioelectronics, researchers have discovered a way to harness the capabilities of the locust, which has a highly-sensitive sense of sight, touch, and smell.
By using the antenna of a locust and keeping it “alive”, scientists were able to capture a large variety of smells detected and undetected by humans.
Antennae from a desert locust were connected to an electronic system that, using machine learning, detects and measures odors with a level of sensitivity usually only found in animals and insects.
According to an article in Engadget, they then paired the robot with an algorithm that learned to characterize the smells by their signal output.
In this way, the team created a system that could reliably differentiate between eight “pure” odors, including geranium, lemon, and marzipan, and two mixtures of different smells.
This phenomenal discovery could have far-reaching applications. Researchers say such robots could one day be used to detect drugs and explosives, and could theoretically replace canines in airport and police search operations.
Obviously, this would be cheaper and more efficient. It can also be used to detect problems in the food industry such as freshness, mold, and various other bacteria.
Ideally, it could also be used by doctors to detect various types of diseases and cancers not typically detected by other technologies.
While the researcher claims the robot is a “scientific first,” this may be a stretch. Last June, researchers from Michigan State University published research detailing a system that used surgically-altered locusts to detect cancer cells.
As far back as 2016, scientists also tried turning locusts into bomb-sniffing cyborgs.
Clearly, researchers have been thinking about this technology and the need for it for a long time now. The concept is there but perhaps needs a few more years until technology is advanced enough to be able to put this terrific and exciting technology to use in the field.
Regardless, once this technology is paired with AI, it can be used not only to detect issues but also to predict issues as well. This would be a game-changer and would accelerate the advancement of synthetic biology and its practical applications.