Cockroaches with tiny backpacks are inspecting Singapore's water pipes
Singapore's Nanyang Technological University (NTU) researchers are testing Madagascar hissing cockroaches in simulated utility-pipe environments (pipe mock-ups), each one geared up with a tiny backpack carrying a camera, lights, and a processor.
Their mission? Spotting leaks and corrosion in hard-to-reach places in recent tests.
AI helps in spotting issues
The team guides these cockroaches remotely using gentle pulses to their antennae, steering them through tight pipe systems.
Artificial intelligence, or AI, steps in to spot issues on the video feed and alerts human operators when defects are detected.
Faster and cheaper inspections
Turns out, cockroaches handle dark, wet, uneven spaces way better than regular robots.
Plus, thanks to an automated assembly line developed with support from Japan's Science and Technology Agency, fitting each insect's electronic backpack takes about 1 minute 8 seconds, making inspections faster and cheaper.
Nature beats machines
NTU actually tested this idea during earlier rescue efforts.
Now they're bringing it back for Singapore's water pipes, showing that sometimes nature beats machines at their own game.