NEWS
2026.07.25
English Press Release on Our Water-Retaining Hydrogel Electrode Published on EurekAlert!
An English-language press release on our recent study was published on EurekAlert! on July 23, 2026. Our research team developed a water-retaining hydrogel electrode that stabilizes the interface between excised silkworm moth antennae and electroantennogram (EAG) recording electrodes. Under tested indoor, room-temperature conditions, the electrode retained more than 92% of its initial EAG response amplitude after seven hours, whereas a conventional grooved gold-plated metal electrode fell below the study's predefined 50% practical-usability threshold by four hours.
The stabilized EAG sensor was also mounted on a lightweight drone. During hovering tests, the system recorded odor-evoked EAG signals, while in separate proof-of-concept free-flight tests, EAG threshold crossings triggered a programmed stop-and-advance sequence. Rather than optimizing odor-source localization in this study, we focused on a fundamental challenge for mobile biohybrid sensing: how to keep a biological odor sensor electrically stable long enough to operate on a moving robotic platform.
The paper was co-first-authored by Reina Omori, Kie Kondo, and Kento Yamauchi and was published in Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical. This work provides a foundation for future odor-sensing drones and mobile robots for disaster response, gas-leak detection, infrastructure inspection, and environmental monitoring.
Read the full press release on EurekAlert!:
Water-retaining hydrogel electrode stabilizes insect-antenna odor sensors for seven hours and supports drone-based odor detection
Original paper:
R. Omori, K. Kondo, K. Yamauchi, et al., “Engineering electroantennogram interfaces through agar-based hydrogels for multi-hour recording and drone-mounted biohybrid odor sensing,” Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 467, 140445, 2026.
SNB: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2026.140445
The stabilized EAG sensor was also mounted on a lightweight drone. During hovering tests, the system recorded odor-evoked EAG signals, while in separate proof-of-concept free-flight tests, EAG threshold crossings triggered a programmed stop-and-advance sequence. Rather than optimizing odor-source localization in this study, we focused on a fundamental challenge for mobile biohybrid sensing: how to keep a biological odor sensor electrically stable long enough to operate on a moving robotic platform.
The paper was co-first-authored by Reina Omori, Kie Kondo, and Kento Yamauchi and was published in Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical. This work provides a foundation for future odor-sensing drones and mobile robots for disaster response, gas-leak detection, infrastructure inspection, and environmental monitoring.
Read the full press release on EurekAlert!:
Water-retaining hydrogel electrode stabilizes insect-antenna odor sensors for seven hours and supports drone-based odor detection
Original paper:
R. Omori, K. Kondo, K. Yamauchi, et al., “Engineering electroantennogram interfaces through agar-based hydrogels for multi-hour recording and drone-mounted biohybrid odor sensing,” Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 467, 140445, 2026.
SNB: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2026.140445