Necrophagy‐Inspired Self‐Repairing Robots: A Proof‐of‐Concept for Outer‐Shell Restoration Using External Resources
Shuya Suga, Mitsuharu Matsumoto
Source abstract
Robots operating in harsh environments require self‐repair capabilities to maintain their functionality. While various self‐healing methodologies have been proposed, most rely on the intrinsic self‐healing properties of the materials themselves. Consequently, it remains challenging to address irregular or complex damage involving material loss or to perform repairs when materials are unavailable within the robot's internal structure or surrounding environment. This paper proposes a self‐repairing robot that acquires fragments from conspecific robots as repair resources, processes them into materials, and repairs missing parts inspired by necrophagy observed in termites and other insects. As a proof‐of‐concept for outer‐shell restoration using external resources, this paper focuses on the outer shell and the transport mechanism. To evaluate the suitability of paraffin wax as the repair material, we conducted experiments measuring changes in hardness during melting‐solidification cycles and confirmed that no systematic degradation in hardness occurred. Furthermore, to assess repair performance against simplified damage models involving material loss, we measured the filling rate of damaged holes in the outer shell. The results demonstrated stable repair of defects of 4 mm in diameter and a certain degree of restoration performance for larger circular defects, supporting the feasibility of the proposed outer‐shell repair process. © 2026 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan and Wiley Periodicals LLC.
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