COMB: Common Open Modular robotic platform for Bees
Pranav Kedia, Marie Messerich, Tim Landgraf

TL;DR
COMB is a compact, open-source modular robotic platform designed for in-hive honeybee experiments, enabling sensing and actuation within constrained hive environments.
Contribution
The paper introduces COMB, a novel modular robotic system tailored for in-hive bee research, supporting diverse sensing and actuation modules with a flexible control architecture.
Findings
Demonstrated precise waggle-trajectory tracking
Achieved multi-image stitching for comb mosaics
Performed spectral analysis of wing actuator signals
Abstract
Experimental access to real honeybee colonies requires robotic systems capable of operating within limited spatial constraints, tolerating hive-specific fouling and environmental conditions, and supporting both sensing and localized actuation without frequent hardware redesign. This paper introduces COMB, a compact, open-source, modular mechatronic platform designed for in-hive experiments within standard observation-hive frames. The platform integrates a XY positioning stage, a Movable Access Window (MAW) for sealed tool access through the hive boundary, interchangeable payload modules, and an embedded control architecture that enables repeatable trajectory execution and signal generation. The platform's capabilities are demonstrated through three representative modules: a biomimetic dance-and-signaling payload, a close-range comb scanner, and an electromagnetic wing actuator for…
Peer Reviews
No public reviews on file for this paper yet. If you reviewed it on a platform where reviews are public (OpenReview, ICLR, NeurIPS, ICML), you can paste yours below so the community can read it here.
Videos
No videos yet. Explain this paper in a talk, walkthrough, or lecture? Add one.
