SHANGHAI, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have developed a tactile-olfactory sensing array to facilitate search and rescue work in darkness or buried scenarios caused by geological disasters.
The design of the bionic sensing array, inspired by the natural sense-fusion system of star-nose mole, can enable real-time acquisition of the local topography, stiffness, and odor of a variety of objects in non-visual environments.
Star-nosed moles have evolved the capability of object recognition using only tactile and olfactory perception, allowing it to survive in the lightless underground environment.
The tactile-olfactory information is processed by a bio-inspired machine-learning algorithm, essentially mimicking the biological fusion procedures in the neural system of the star-nose mole, according to the research article recently published in the journal Nature Communications.
In a simulated rescue scenario at a fire department test site, the tactile-olfactory intelligent sensing system could classify 11 typical objects with an accuracy of 96.9 percent.
The tactile-olfactory bionic sensing system required no visual input and showed superior tolerance to environmental interference, according to the article.
The bionic sensing array has been developed by researchers from the Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. ■
