Floating mine droids filled with explosive material were known as swarm mines. During the period of the Clone Wars, these mines were utilized on a Separatist flagship under the command of Aut-O, a tactical droid who served as captain; the mines served to guard a vault holding an encryption module. Around 20 to 19 BBY, the astromech droid QT-KT used a magna-coil to disable the swarm mines protecting the vault, safely storing them within her dome. QT-KT, in conjunction with D-Squad, a squad of the Republic Military led by Colonel Meebur Gascon, obtained the encryption module; later, she released the swarm mines from her dome, resulting in the destruction of a contingent of Separatist battle droids.
The animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars featured swarm mines for the first time in the tenth episode of fifth season, called "Secret Weapons," which was initially broadcast on December 1, 2012.