With the development of science and technology, people are pursuing more and more exquisite, "small" is the pronoun of exquisite.
Once bricky mobile phones have become antiques, but now the makers of light, thin smartphones are getting better at it. Desktop TVS, which used to be big ass to be patted, have evolved into ultra-thin LCD TVS, and computers are getting lighter and lighter.
In robotics, too, the pursuit of "small".
Recently, Harvard University published a new study called HAMR-JR. The robot is 2.25cm long and weighs 0.3g. It can run, jump, carry objects and even flip coins. It can outpace the world's fastest insect and carry objects 10 times its own weight. According to the research team, is one of the smallest and fastest micro-robots ever made, with the best sensitivity of its kind.
In fact, the research and development of micro-robots has lasted for many years, so far, the world has made a lot of achievements in the research of micro-robots. Today, as technology advances, countless scientists continue to work hard to make robots smaller and lighter.
For micro robots, the most widespread applications are in the medical field.
For example, in Wu Cheng 'en's Journey to the West, sun Wukong deliberately becomes smaller and is eaten by Princess Iron Fan, torturing her to borrow the fan. Now, Wu's fantasy has come true, and tiny robots have long been able to do just that -- not torture, but save.
Capsule endoscopy robot: the most mature micro robot
Microrobots enter the medical field, originated from the people to improve the way of examination. Traditional colonoscopies can make patients uncomfortable, which has led to the use of micro-robots in gastrointestinal examinations.
In 2000, Israel's Given Image won FDA approval for the first capsule endoscope to enter the clinic, but NaviCam, launched by Ahem, could not be considered as a micro-robot until 2013. The NaviCam system has a magnetic field precisely controlled system and can perform a full stomach examination in about 15 minutes using an intelligent endoscope, recorder and locator.
Capsule endoscopy robot can be said to be the most mature micro robot application, through the unremitting efforts of domestic researchers, China's capsule endoscopy robot technology has been in the forefront of the world.
Ii. Micro-surgical robots: minimally invasive, precision medicine needs
In recent years, surgery has become more and more minimally invasive. In the past, abdominal surgery required opening the patient's abdominal cavity, which was not conducive to recovery, but also increased the risk of infection. Today, many common surgeries require only tiny medical robots, making coin-sized wounds unnecessary.
In 2015, a team of Researchers in the United States developed a super-tiny robot. It can be applied to smaller parts of the body, such as ears and bronchi, reducing the amount of incision that needs to be opened.
In 2017, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology created a magical miniature folding robot. The tiny robot is wrapped in an oral lozenges made of ice. When taken, it travels through the esophagus to the stomach, where the ice capsule melts and the robot opens like an origami. The unfurled robot looks like a crumpled piece of paper, expanding and contracting when exposed to heat or magnetic fields to make the robot move. Surgeons control the robot's movements by influencing magnets on the robot's body through an external electromagnetic field. The robot can also crawl along the stomach wall to a designated position by flexing and stretching its folds. It also uses its own magnets to "catch" and remove foreign objects, such as accidentally swallowed button batteries.
Iii. Vascular Robot: transporter and Scavenger
As micro-robots get smaller, it is possible to perform more microscopic specific tasks, and vascular robots are a product of targeted therapy.
In the past, we used to take drugs orally or by subcutaneous injection, but this way will inevitably lead to the waste of drugs, or need more materials to help better absorption of drugs. Drug developers are also searching for better drugs and ways to use them, but robots are also showing remarkable strength in drug therapy.
At present, there are two main ways for vascular drug delivery robot to deliver drugs: one is to carry drugs to a specific part as a container, and then open the container by controlling deformation; The second is to make the robot into a sponge shape, first soak the drug to reach the destination, then release the drug through deformation extrusion, so as to achieve the purpose of precise release. In this way, doctors can better control the precise location and dosage of drugs.
In addition to delivering drugs, the microbots could also be used to clean blood vessels. Using nanotechnology, robotics researchers have designed a series of tiny robots that manipulate blood vessels inside patients.
For example, Germany developed a scallop-shaped miniature swimming device, which can open and close the shell at different rates and shuttle through the liquid with viscosity. Therefore, it can be used in the research and treatment of cardiovascular diseases caused by increased blood viscosity, which is helpful to human health.
Fourth, the infinite prospects of micro-robots
At present, the most active and concerned medical application of micro-robots is about cancer treatment. In conjunction with medical technology solutions based on 4D printing technology, micro-robots have become a targeted technology to explore cancer treatment, or targeted therapy.
However, at present, both the targeted therapy technology based on 4D printing technology and the targeted therapy technology based on electronic technology of "micro robot" still need time to perfect, and the truly mature application products are still rare. And with clinical needs emerging in multiple departments, we can say that the latest research now gives us a new direction for the future.
In the near future, with the unremitting efforts of researchers, the realization of subversive breakthrough and clinical application are just around the corner. Humans will no longer be afraid of known cancers and so on, and we expect to achieve remarkable curative effects with the help of "micro-robots".
