Jordan Boyle at the University of Leeds, UK, has closely studied the nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans and has developed a robot based on it, using control software that mimics its unique motion.

One day he hopes it could head for earthquake-hit cities in search of people trapped in collapsed buildings.

Based on the biology of the nematode, Boyle created a 2-meter-long, 16-centimeter-wide robot that uses sensors to control motion in the same way as the worm.

The robot has 12 articulated segments, each of which can swing from side to side using a geared motor in its center.

The robot senses the angle each segment describes with respect to its spine and control software uses this information to calculate the robot’s overall undulation pattern and orientation. Microphones, carbon-dioxide sensors (sensing breath) and infrared cameras on its “head” would allow the robot to wriggle its way to people in trouble, says Boyle.