They create a ‘robot-crab’ so small that it is able to walk on the edge of a coin

by time news

Madrid

Updated:05/28/2022 02:36h

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It can hardly be seen with the naked eye, because it is fifty times smaller than half a millimeter, but the robot built by researchers at Northwestern University (USA), is shaped like a crab and is capable of walking along the edge of a coin. It is the smallest walking robot in history and its creators have just told the magazine ‘Science Robotics’ how they managed to make it.

Robots this size have a host of potential uses: from assisting with surgical procedures to repairing machinery in spaces where a wrench won’t fit, for example. The smaller they are, the more scenarios they can be used in. And this little robot, although it will not yet be manufactured industrially, is quite amazing.

With the appearance of a crab, it also performs the same movements as this crustacean. And while robots normally take forms inspired by nature for practical reasons, in this case it was just a “creative whim”, according to the researchers, as the technique they have developed can be used to make small robots in almost any shape required.

The robot is manipulated using lasers – Northwestern University

“Our technology allows for a variety of controlled movement modalities and can walk at an average speed of half the length of its body per second,” he says. Yonggang Huang, a mechanical engineer from Northwestern University in Illinois. “This is very difficult to achieve at such small scales for ground-based robots.”

The technology behind the robot was originally developed eight years ago and is not unlike a ‘pop-up’ book with fold-outs: the robot parts are attached to a stretched rubber substrate, and when the material relaxes , the device takes its shape. By carefully calibrating the base parts, the shape of the robot can be precisely controlled. A similar approach is used with moving parts, which are made of an alloy material that changes shape depending on whether or not it is heated.

The lasers, which act as a remote control, are used to heat specific parts of the robot; as those parts morph into a different shape, they propel the crab forward. No power supply or motor is needed, and a thin layer of glass ensures that the components return to their original shape as they cool.

“Because these structures are so small, the rate of cooling is very fast,” he says. John Rogers, materials scientist at Northwestern University. “In fact, reducing the size of these robots allows them to run faster.” By pointing the lasers at different sections of the robo-crab, the researchers can establish the direction of locomotion. By adjusting the frequency of the laser scanning, the speed of movement of the robot can also be modified.

The researchers say there is a lot of potential in their new process: they can make robots turn and jump using the same techniques, for example. As long as the robot is within the line of sight of the laser, it can be manipulated remotely. “Robotics is an exciting field of research, and the development of microscale robots is a fun topic for academic exploration,” says Rogers. You can imagine micro-robots as agents to repair or assemble small structures or machines in industry or as surgical assistants to clear clogged arteries, stop internal bleeding or remove cancerous tumors, all in minimally invasive procedures.”

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