From Genes to Agents: Transferring Biological Quorum Sensing Principles to Adaptive Swarm Control

Building on biohybrid microrobot research (Leaman et al., 2020) and the swarm robotics literature (Devi et al., 2024), this idea proposes the direct transfer of quorum sensing (QS) concepts from biology into the control logic of artificial multi-agent swarms. Instead of using only engineered communication protocols, agents would employ QS-like rules—collectively modulating their own behaviors based on local density or environmental signals, akin to bacterial gene circuits. Unlike conventional swarm robotics, where communication rules are often static, this approach allows agents to dynamically adjust their behavioral "gene expression" based on group context, enabling adaptive phase transitions (e.g., from exploration to aggregation) in response to real-time group states. This cross-domain synthesis could yield new classes of robust, self-organizing MAS that can reconfigure their emergent behavior on the fly, inspired by biological resilience.

References:

1. A review: Swarm Robotics: Cooperative Control in Multi-Agent Systems. Kskn Venkata Ramana Devi, Smitha B S, Sorabh Lakhanpal, Ravi Kalra, Vandana Arora Sethi, Sadiq Khader Thajil (2024). E3S Web of Conferences.
2. Data-driven statistical modeling of the emergent behavior of biohybrid microrobots. E. Leaman, A. Sahari, Mahama A. Traore, Brian Geuther, Carmen M. Morrow, B. Behkam (2020). APL Bioengineering.