Biorobot crawls on the bottom
Scientists have created a biorobot from the muscles of a sea hare and a polymer shell
American engineers have combined the organic muscles of the mollusk Aplysia californica with a 3D-printed frame and taught it to crawl. In the future, biohybrid robots can be assigned to explore the seabed and search for leaks of toxic substances.
The appearance of the biorobot. Photo: Victoria Webster
To create a crawling robot, scientists used the muscles of the sea hare – mollusk Aplysia californica from the genus Aplysia. Their cells adapt well to changes in temperature and salinity of water, and the muscles turned out to be easier to control than the muscles of mammals or birds.
Organic muscles connect the body and two "arms" of the robot, which were printed on a 3D printer made of polymer. Muscles are controlled by their own ganglia – nerve nodes – of mollusks, which are activated by chemical or electrical signals. The contraction and relaxation of the muscles sets the "arms" in motion, and the robot crawls forward at a speed of about 0.4 centimeters per minute.
Thanks to organic muscles, the robot is softer and more mobile than mechanical structures. In addition, the power–to-volume ratio of muscle cells is greater than that of artificial systems, and they work from their own power source - nutrients in their environment.
Scientists from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland (Ohio, USA) will talk about their achievements at a conference in Edinburgh (UK) this week. The press release of Researchers build a crawling robot from sea slug parts and a 3-D printed body is published on the university's website.
The authors of the study believe that biorobots are excellent for exploring the seabed, in particular, for searching for flight recorders of crashed aircraft. In the future, the laboratory plans to create a fully organic robot with a lightweight frame made of collagen extracted from the skin of shellfish. If such a robot gets lost, then over time it will be eaten by marine animals, or it will gradually decompose without polluting the environment.
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20.07.2016