Creating connections: Bed bugs to UAV swarms

Modern aerospace systems need a novel biologically inspired approach for multiagent consensus based on swarms seen throughout nature. Bed bugs exhibit many of the desired characteristics of UAV swarm performance. The common bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), is an ectoparasite found to live among vertebrate hosts, most commonly humans. Blood feeding is crucial for bed bug growth, development, and reproduction. Bed bugs aggregate together based on several stimuli/attractants, such as heat, host odors, and carbon dioxide (CO2), the most attractive host cue. Bed bugs demonstrate sophisticated group decision-making while considering these criteria. Data collection is needed to quantify how bed bugs respond to these factors by designing a test-platform to record bed bug movement. A 6ft by 1 ft testing arena was created to allow different carbon dioxide concentrations to be fed into an enclosed area through ports at the end of the apparatus. Bed bug responses to CO2 will be recorded for individual bed bugs and bed bug aggregation regarding gender and hunger status at each foot in the apparatus. The working hypothesis is that the collective decision-making process of bed bugs will be exhibited in activating both its olfaction and visual systems and can make a group decision based on the presence of CO2 concentration and aggregation pheromones. The findings of this research will help understand the behavior of bed bugs and help develop novel methods for pest management, along with the potential to have a widespread impact on UAV swarm design.