MSGID: 1:317/3 64927d07   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Pangolin, the inspiration for a medical robot    
    Robot is made of metal and yet is soft and flexible    
      
     Date:   
         June 20, 2023   
     Source:   
         Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems   
     Summary:   
         Scientists have developed a magnetically controlled soft medical   
         robot with a unique, flexible structure inspired by the body of   
         a pangolin. The robot is freely movable despite built-in hard   
         metal components. Thus, depending on the magnetic field, it can   
         adapt its shape to be able to move and can emit heat when needed,   
         allowing for functionalities such as selective cargo transportation   
         and release as well as mitigation of bleeding.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Pangolins are fascinating creatures. This animal looks like a walking pine   
   cone, as it is the only mammal completely covered with hard scales. The   
   scales are made of keratin, just like our hair and nails. The scales   
   overlap and are directly connected to the underlying soft skin layer. This   
   special arrangement allows the animals to curl up into a ball in case   
   of danger.   
      
   While pangolins have many other unique features, researchers from   
   the Physical Intelligence Department at the Max Planck Institute for   
   Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, which is led by Prof. Dr. Metin   
   Sitti, were particularly fascinated by how pangolins can curl up their   
   scale-covered bodies in a flash. They took the animal as a model and   
   developed a flexible robot made of soft and hard components that, just   
   like the animal, become a sphere in the blink of an eye - - with the   
   additional feature that the robot can emit heat when needed.   
      
   In a research paper to be published in Nature Communications on 20 June   
   2023, first author Ren Hao Soon and his colleagues present a robot design   
   that is no more than two centimeters long and consists of two layers:   
   a soft layer made of a polymer studded with small magnetic particles   
   and a hard component made of metal elements arranged in overlapping   
   layers. Thus, although the robot is made of solid metal components,   
   it is still soft and flexible for use inside the human body.   
      
   When the robot is exposed to a low-frequency magnetic field, the   
   researchers can roll up the robot and move it back and forth as they   
   wish. The metal elements stick out like the animal's scales, without   
   hurting any surrounding tissue. Once it is rolled up, the robot can   
   transport particles such as medicines. The vision is that such a small   
   machine will one day travel through our digestive system, for example.   
      
   Double useful: freely movable and hot When the robot is exposed to a   
   high-frequency magnetic field, it heats up to over 70oC thanks to the   
   built-in metal. Thermal energy is used in several medical procedures,   
   such as treating thrombosis, stopping bleeding and removing tumor   
   tissue. Untethered robots that can move freely, even though they are   
   made of hard elements such as metal and can also emit heat, are rare. The   
   pangolin robot is therefore considered promising for modern medicine. It   
   could one day reach even the narrowest and most sensitive regions in the   
   body in a minimally invasive and gentle way and emit heat as needed. That   
   is a vision of the future. Already today, in a video, the researchers   
   are showing how they can flexibly steer the robot through animal tissue   
   and artificial organs.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Zoology # Behavioral_Science #   
                   Animal_Learning_and_Intelligence # Agriculture_and_Food   
             o Earth_&_Climate   
                   # Atmosphere # Weather # Acid_Rain # Recycling_and_Waste   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Hyperthermia o Radiography o Rotifer o Artificial_reef   
             o Lead o Making_existing_structures_earthquake_resistant o   
             Fire_fighting o Muscle   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   Max_Planck_Institute_for_Intelligent_Systems. Note: Content may be edited   
   for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Ren Hao Soon, Zhen Yin, Metin Alp Dogan, Nihal Olcay Dogan,   
      Mehmet Efe   
         Tiryaki, Alp Can Karacakol, Asli Aydin, Pouria Esmaeili-Dokht,   
         Metin Sitti. Pangolin-inspired untethered magnetic robot for   
         on-demand biomedical heating applications. Nature Communications,   
         2023; 14 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38689-x   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230620113819.htm   
      
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