Aaron Nathans/Princeton University
Engineers from Princeton University in the United States have created unusual material, the robot can move independently, change shape, and respond to commands in the form of electromagnetic signals.
«You can transform material into a robot and it can be controlled by an external magnetic field», — explains professor of engineering Glaucio Paulino.
The material was created from a mixture of plastics and specially designed magnetic composites. Using a magnetic field, the scientists changed material structure, allowing it to expand, change shape, move and bend in any direction.
«Electromagnetic fields carry energy and signal simultaneously. Each behavior is very simple, but when you combine them, the behavior can become very complex. This study pushed the boundaries of power electronics by demonstrating that torque can be transmitted remotely, instantaneously, and accurately over a distance to cause complex robotic movements», — says the study’s lead author, Associate Professor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Center for Energy and Environment, Minji Chen.
This material is a modular aggregate of a large number of elementary cells capable of changing their own shape, which are mirror images of each other. This mirror image, called a chiral structure, enables the material to behave in a complex way.
One of the leading authors of the study Tuo Zhao used a laser lithography device at Princeton University to create a 100-micron-high prototype of a metabot. According to the researchers, such robots may one day be able to deliver drugs to the human body and even help surgeons repair damaged bones and tissues.
The researchers also used metamaterial to create a thermostat that works by switching between a black surface that absorbs light and one that reflects it. Scientists exposed the metamaterial to bright sunlight and were able to adjust the surface temperature from 27°C to 70°C and vice versa. This material can also be used in antennas, lenses, and devices that work with sunlight wavelengths.
Scientists have created plastic tubes with supports that support them. These supports are positioned in such a way that they allow the tubes to collapse when compressed and compress when twisted. The developers combined two mirrored tubes at the base to form a long cylinder. As a result, one end of the cylinder bends when twisted in one direction and the other end bends when twisted in the opposite direction.
This simple structure of repeating tubes allows each section to be moved independently using precisely engineered magnetic fields. The magnetic field causes the tubes to twist, shrink, or unfold, creating complex patterns of behavior.
The results of the study are published in the journal Nature
Source: SkiTechDaily