Robotics, in addition to being fascinating, is our ally for evolution. The most recent advance in robotics has been a humanoid robot with the ability to disassemble and reform. Scientists say that this is a small step towards an even greater advance, since with this discovery it will be possible to carry out more in-depth studies. check the new features of humanoid robot.
a shapeshifting robot
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This robot can change its physical state to get in or out of tricky environments. Check out how this robot was designed and how it could be the future of robotics:
How does this robot work?
The little robot was designed to be able to move through tight spaces without much difficulty. This ability guarantees a greater potential for usefulness in the areas of electronics and modern medicine applications.
Scientists, to test their creation, created a track with obstacles to be overcome by the little robot. The track was modeled to represent the human stomach and small cages.
Small robots can get around places too small or complicated for humans manage with typical tools, from thorough repair work to targeted delivery of medicines.
“Giving robots the ability to switch between liquid and solid states gives them more functionality,” says engineer Chengfeng Pan of the Chinese University of Hong Kong in China.
What is the material of the robot?
Research carried out by Sun Yat-sen University, in China, was responsible for creating these malleable robots. The fact that the robot's material is malleable, being able to change its physical state between liquid and solid in a controlled way, can bring many benefits in the very near future.
To create a robot capable of accomplishing such a feat, a soft metal was used, gallium, a metal with a low melting point, approximately 30º Celsius. It is because of this characteristic that it is possible to control the physical state of the little robot.
Conclusion after testing
After carrying out tests in laboratories, the researchers point out that in order to make applications to the real world it is necessary to make adjustments to the design, but that the test results are promising.
“Future work should further explore how these robots could be used in a biomedical context”, says engineer. He adds:
“What we're showing are just one-off demos, proofs of concept. But much more study will be needed to delve into how this could actually be used for drug delivery or foreign object removal.”