Insect cyborgs have been proposed for application in future rescue operations, environmental monitoring, and hazardous area surveys. An energy harvester for insect carrying is critical to the long-lasting life of insect cyborgs, and designing an energy harvester with superior energy output within the load capacity of tiny flying insects is very important. In this study, we measured the thorax vibration frequency of bees during loaded flight conditions. We propose a piezoelectric vibration energy harvester for bees that has a mass of only 46 mg and can achieve maximum effective output voltage and energy density of 5.66 V and 1.27 mW/cm³, respectively. The harvester has no marked effect on the bees’ normal movement, which is verified by experiments of mounting the harvester on bees. These results indicate that the proposed harvester is expected to realize a self-power supply of tiny insect cyborgs.

The integration of electronic stimulation devices with insects in the context of cyborg insect systems has great application potential, particularly in the fields of environmental monitoring, urban surveillance, and rescue missions. Despite considerable advantages compared to the current robot technology, including flexibility, durability, and low energy consumption, this integration faces certain challenges related to the potential risk of charge accumulation caused by prolonged and repetitive electrical stimulations. To address these challenges, this study proposes a universal system for remote signal output control using infrared signals. The proposed system integrates high-precision digital-to-analog converters capable of generating customized waveform electrical stimulation signals within defined ranges. This enhances the accuracy of locomotion control in cyborg insects while maintaining real-time control and dynamic parameter adjustment. The proposed system is verified by experiments. The experimental results show that the signals generated by the proposed system have a success rate of over 76.25% in controlling the turning locomotion of cyborg insects, which is higher than previously reported results. In addition, the charge-balanced characteristics of these signals can minimize muscle tissue damage, thus substantially enhancing control repeatability. This study provides a comprehensive solution for the remote control and monitoring of cyborg insects, whose flexibility and adaptability can meet various application and experimental requirements. The results presented in this study lay a robust foundation for further advancement of various technologies, particularly those related to cyborg insect locomotion control systems and wireless control mechanisms for cyborg insects.

Inspired by the dynamic wet adhesive systems in nature, various artificial adhesive surfaces have been developed but still face different challenges. Crucially, the theoretical mechanics of wet adhesives has never been sufficiently revealed. Here, we develop a novel adhesive mechanism for governing wet adhesion and investigate the biological models of honeybee arolium for reproducing the natural wet adhesive systems. Micro-nano structures of honeybee arolium and arolium-prints were observed by Cryogenic scanning electron microscopy (Cryo-SEM), and the air pockets were found in the contact interface notably. Subsequently, the adhesive models with a three-phase composite interface (including air pockets, liquid secretion, and hexagonal frames of arolium), were formed to analyze the wet adhesion of honeybee arolium. The results of theoretical calculations and experiments indicated an enhanced adhesive mechanism of the honeybee by liquid self-sucking effects and air-embolism effects. Under these effects, normal and shear adhesion can be adjusted by controlling the proportion of liquid secretion and air pockets in the contact zone. Notably, the air-embolism effects contribute to the optimal coupling of smaller normal adhesion with greater shear adhesion, which is beneficial for the high stride frequency of honeybees. These works can provide a fresh perspective on the development of bio-inspired wet adhesive surfaces.

Biomachine hybrid robots have been proposed for important scenarios, such as wilderness rescue, ecological monitoring, and hazardous area surveying. The energy supply unit used to power the control backpack carried by these robots determines their future development and practical application. Current energy supply devices for control backpacks are mainly chemical batteries. To achieve self-powered devices, researchers have developed solar energy, bioenergy, biothermal energy, and biovibration energy harvesters. This review provides an overview of research in the development of chemical batteries and self-powered devices for biomachine hybrid robots. Various batteries for different biocarriers and the entry points for the design of self-powered devices are outlined in detail. Finally, an overview of the future challenges and possible directions for the development of energy supply devices used to biomachine hybrid robots is provided.