NTU Singapore builds 4.4mm surgical robot performing 5 functions
Singapore's NTU scientists have built a super tiny surgical robot, just 4.4mm long, that can do five things: move around, cut tissue, deliver drugs, collect biopsy samples, and even generate heat for therapies.
What's wild is it works without any electronics or batteries; instead, it switches between tasks in less than a second using external magnetic fields generated by external coils.
Robot's magnetized silicone enables selective actuation
The robot's soft silicone body is packed with magnetic particles, letting different parts respond to the same magnetic field in unique ways.
In lab tests on models and chicken liver, it successfully demonstrated several functions in lab tests.
Plus, biocompatibility checks showed over 99% cell viability in cultured human skin cells.
While it's still a prototype controlled from outside the body, this little device could someday make minimally invasive surgeries much simpler, combining diagnosis, treatment, and sample collection into one neat package.