Although at a first glance it could be misconstrued as a spider or a tiny crab, what engineers at US's Northwestern University built was a half millimeter-wide remote-controlled robot.
The tiny robot can bend, twist, crawl, walk, turn and jump without the use of motors or electricity. The world’s smallest remote-controlled robot is controlled using lasers.
It looks and moves like a miniature crab, a shape chosen on a "creative whim", the researchers said but the techniques they've developed can be used to develop tiny robots in any shape required.
Tinier than a flea, a crab robot stands on the edge of a coin. (Image credit: Northwestern University)
"Our technology enables a variety of controlled motion modalities and can walk with an average speed of half its body length per second," said mechanical engineer Yonggang Huang, from Northwestern University in Illinois.
"This is very challenging to achieve at such small scales for terrestrial robots."
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The technology was originally developed eight years ago, reported Science Alert. Its parts are fixed to a stretched rubber substrate, and when the material is relaxed, the robot pops up into its shape.
Lasers are used as the remote control and is used to heat particular parts of the robot. As those parts change their shape, they propel the crab forward. But, a thin glass layer ensures the components go back to their original shape as they cool.
Smaller than fleas, several miniature crab robots stand together. (Image credit: Northwestern University)
"Because these structures are so tiny, the rate of cooling is very fast," said materials scientist John Rogers, from Northwestern University who led the experimental work. "In fact, reducing the sizes of these robots allows them to run faster."
Speaking about the use of such a tiny robot, he added, “You might imagine micro-robots as agents to repair or assemble small structures or machines in industry or as surgical assistants to clear clogged arteries, to stop internal bleeding or to eliminate cancerous tumors — all in minimally invasive procedures.”
The research was published in an article titled, Submillimeter-scale multimaterial terrestrial robots in Science Robotics.
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