2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

Optimization of molecular robot swarms for the emergence of collective behaviors

Research Project

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Project/Area Number	19KK0261
Research Category	Fund for the Promotion of Joint International Research (Fostering Joint International Research (B))
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Review Section	Medium-sized Section 62:Applied informatics and related fields
Research Institution	Ochanomizu University
Principal Investigator	AUBERT-KATO Nathanael お茶の水女子大学, 基幹研究院, 講師 (10749659)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	川又生吹京都大学, 理学研究科, 准教授 (30733977) 佐藤佑介九州工業大学, 大学院情報工学研究院, 准教授 (60830560)
Project Period (FY)	2019-10-07 – 2024-03-31
Keywords	Molecular robotics / Swarm / Collective behaviors / Reaction-Diffusion / Microfluidics / Quality-Diversity / Evolutionary algorithms
Outline of Final Research Achievements	In this project, we focused on exploring the optimal conditions for swarming behavior in a system of molecular robots. The ability for individuals in a group to collaborate and reach a consensus is an important factor for the emergence of natural phenomenon such as aggregation or quorum sensing. In the molecular robotic systems considered in this project, the behavior of the robot is decided through communication with the group and environment rather than from external influence. Moreover, we focused on the factors necessary for robust group behaviors, both to individual failure and communication noise. We validated our results in simulation, on a swarm of small (regular) robots, and on molecular robots.
Free Research Field	分子ロボティクス
Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements	本研究が該当する分子ロボティクス分野は、医療や生物学、スマートマテリアルへの応用可能性を秘めており、学術的意義は大きい。特に分子ロボットの集団運動能力を向上させることは、耐故障性や冗長性の観点で性能向上に大きく寄与するため、さまざま波及効果があると期待される。