It sounds like the script of a Hollywood movie, or a premise from a distant future, but researchers are now turning beetles into living robots to send into disaster zones.

A team from the University of Queensland biorobotics lab have developed a microchip backpack which they attach to the common darkling beetle.

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It connects to the animal’s nervous system through its anntennae and sensors on its back, allowing the scientists to send signals to guide where it goes.

“If we use electrical stimulation to apply a signal to the left anntennae, the insect might feel there’s something on the left-hand side and move to the right,” project lead Dr Thang Vo-Doan said.

The beetles are not under control and still have freedom to move where and how they want, which makes sure they can safely navigate their surroundings.

The researchers liken the relationship to a horse and rider.

“The whole point is to let the beetles use their inherent ability to traverse the environment and, if they wander off where we want them to go, we simulate one part of their nervous system to go left or turn right,” research assistant Lachie Fitzgerald said.

The aim is to one day be able to deploy a swarm of insects into the rubble after a natural disaster such as an earthquake to locate survivors.

The researchers say insects are the perfect candidate for the task because they can get into small spaces and traverse difficult ground, which no advanced robot can do.

“Just naturally they’re able to cover an incredibly varying terrain, they can climb upside-down, they can climb walls,” Fitzgerald said.

“If they lost a leg, (or) fall a metre — they’re so resilient.”

Cockroaches have also been used in this research and have the added benefit of being able to carry heavy loads.

It means they could be sent into dangerous areas carrying cameras, sensors or other equipment.

“You cannot have an artificial system that is as agile as an insect. So, an insect can move easily or in a complex way and easily adapt to the environment,” Vo-Doan said.

There is still a lot of work to do to give researchers more precise control over the insects’ movements.

Their work is being funded by the University of Queensland but would benefit from extra investment, the researchers said.