Construction of 3-DOF servo-sphere for behavior measurement of silkworm moths

Abstract

In this study, we developed a behavior measurement system named 3D servo-sphere. The system is composed of one sphere and three omni-wheels that support the sphere. A male silkworm moth, Bombyx mori, is put on the top of the sphere. The position and the body angle of a moth are observed by a high-speed camera that is installed above a moth. Since the system can rotate the sphere in 3-DOF independently, we can keep the position and the body angle at the origin without any body-fixture. By the proposed system, we can observe natural behavior of a moth during CPT (Chemical Plume Tracing). The system also enables that we can give stimulus precisely without fixing the animal, because the feedback system keeps the position of the head of a moth. By using this, we can observe the relationship between input stimulus and output action in long run. By connecting to a virtual space in a computer, we can apply modeled environment to a real moth. The system will be effective to identify transfer functions from stimulus to behavior. 1.