[ad_1]
What do you think of when you hear the word "robot"? The quadruped spot of Boston Dynamics? The humanoid pepper of SoftBank? Or flexible devices, practically microscopic, able to swim in body fluids? It's probably not the last of these three factors, but it's the one that could someday provide life-saving drugs to hard-to-reach places in your body.
In an article placed to appear in the newspaper Progress of science, a team of scientists from EPFL and ETH Zurich describes a biocompatible, bacteria-inspired robot that can change its shape as needed and can cross narrow blood vessels without compromising speed. It is interesting to note that Selman Sakar, lead author of the paper, stated that he and his colleagues had followed a variant of origami – the kirigami – to design and bend the outer structure.
"Our robots have a special composition and structure that allows them to adapt to the characteristics of the fluid in which they pbad," Sakar said in a statement. "For example, if they experience a change in viscosity or osmotic concentration, they change their shape to retain their speed and maneuverability without losing control of the direction of movement."
Above: Nanobots in action.
Image credit: ETH Zurich
The secret lies in what is called a hydrogel nanocomposite, a hydrated polymer network, tightly bound, filled with nanomaterials and relatively elastic. Rather than stuffing miniaturized sensors, batteries and actuators inside tiny robots, the researchers packed nanocomposites with magnetic nanoparticles that respond to changes in surrounding electric fields. The robots can then be "programmed" to deform on command or in advance, or left to navigate through cavities autonomously taking advantage of fluid flow.
The other key advantage of robots? A low bill of materials. Sakar and co-author Bradley Nelson say that they can be manufactured in volume at a "reasonable" cost.
"Nature has developed a multitude of microorganisms that change shape as their environmental conditions change. This basic principle inspired our design of microbots, "Nelson said. "The main challenge for us was to develop physics describing the types of changes we were interested in, and then incorporate them into new manufacturing technologies."
The team plans to improve the performance of machines to navigate complex fluids. Once this is done, your doctor may prescribe a dose of unmanageable nanobots.
Source link
