Continuous Visual Navigation with Ant-Inspired Memories

Continuous Visual Navigation with Ant-Inspired Memories | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Continuous Visual Navigation with Ant-Inspired Memories Gabriel Gattaux, Antoine Wystrach, Julien Serres, Franck Ruffier This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5505975/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Sep, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Solitary foraging ants excel in following long visual routes in complex environments with limited sensory and neural resources—an ability that remains challenging for robots with minimal computational power. Here, we introduce a self-supervised, insect-inspired neural network that enables robust route-following on the compact, low-cost Antcar robot. The robot leverages key aspects of ant brain and behavior: (i) continuous, one-shot visual route learning using panoramic encoding in a mushroom body-inspired network, (ii) categorization of low-resolution egocentric panoramas via oscillatory movements, (iii) opponent-process control of angular and forward velocities based on visual familiarity, (iv) recognition of places of interest along routes, and (v) motivation-based memory modulation. Antcar autonomously followed routes between indoor or outdoor destinations, forward or backward, while remaining stable in both theoretical analysis and real-world testing despite occlusions and visual changes. Across 1.3 km of autonomous travel, Antcar achieved challenging route-following with sub-20 cm lateral error at speeds up to 150 cm/s, requiring only 148 kilobits of memory and processing panoramas every 62 ms. This efficient, brain-inspired architecture stands out from more sensor-intensive and computationally demanding methods, presenting a neuromorphic approach with valuable insights into insect navigation and practical robotic applications. Biological sciences/Computational biology and bioinformatics/Computational models Physical sciences/Engineering/Mechanical engineering Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files ContinuousvisualnavigationSupplementaryInformation.pdf Supplementary Notes ContinuousvisualroutefollowingVF.mp4 Continuous Visual Navigation with Ant Inspired Memories Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Sep, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5505975","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":384261887,"identity":"2405eaba-d262-47e0-8e5d-ca2d572ca45c","order_by":0,"name":"Gabriel Gattaux","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9424-7543","institution":"Aix-Marseille University - 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