US EditionLeiden Scientists 3D-Print Microrobots That Swim Without a Brain
Leiden researchers 3D-printed tiny flexible microrobots that swim and navigate autonomously by shape and environment interaction, opening new biomedical and manufacturing opportunities.
- Leiden researchers Professor Daniela Kraft and Mengshi Wei unveiled 3D-printed microrobots yesterday that swim and navigate autonomously without sensors, software, or external control. These soft, chain-like devices operate through shape and environmental interaction alone.
- Using a Nanoscribe 3D-printer, the team fabricated flexible structures with 5 μm elements and 0.5 μm bar-joints. This precision manufacturing at the technical edge enables tiny, flexible forms to interact dynamically with their environment.
- These robots sense obstacles and automatically search for alternate routes through continuous feedback between shape and motion. Wei explained, "And when two robots meet, they naturally steer away from each other."
- Autonomous navigation opens significant possibilities for biomedical applications, including targeted drug delivery and minimally invasive diagnostics. Operating without onboard electronics offers simpler, more adaptable solutions for navigating complex environments at the microscale.
- Decoding these physics could revolutionize how scientists approach biological microswimmers. Professor Kraft stated, "This knowledge will help us develop more advanced microrobots and devices.
6 Articles
6 Articles
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Alive or not? Tiny 3D-printed robots that swim and navigate just like animals
Leiden researchers Professor Daniela Kraft and Mengshi Wei have created microscopic robots that move without sensors, software, or external control. Instead, their behavior emerges entirely from their shape and the way they interact with their environment. They are only a few tens of micrometers long—far smaller than the width of a human hair—yet these robots can swim, sense, navigate and adapt in ways that look surprisingly life-like. And all t…
Alive or not? Tiny 3D printed robots that swim and navigate just like animals
They are only a few tens of micrometres long — far smaller than the width of a human hair – yet these robots can swim, sense, navigate and adapt in ways that look surprisingly life-like. And all this without having a brain.
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