Researchers in Germany and Austria have created a collection of tiny, ultra-fast robots that can walk, swim, transport cargo, levitate, slip into tiny spaces and capture a fly in the blink of an eye.
The swiftness of these tiny creations is a breakthrough in robotics and could have applications in everything from assembly lines to bio-medics.
“The idea is actually from nature,” said Xu Wang, a material engineer at the Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research and one of the study’s lead researchers.
“We know that in nature some animals and plants need to act fast, otherwise they cannot survive in harsh environments. For example, if you look at nature, you find Venus flytraps that need to be very fast otherwise the insects just fly away. So we thought, ‘Ok, how can we fabricate a robot that mimics this behaviour?’"
Of the five designs, two can swim and one levitates.
One, shaped like a manta-ray, imitates the flap of fins to glide forward in water. A second swimming robot has a triangular shape and rotates upon itself like a propeller.
Each robot is made of magnetic rubber and is ten times thinner than a human hair. Some are just seven micrometers thick.
It is this thinness that allows such flexible, quick movements. Their soft but durable material, similar to tissue structure, makes them suited for more delicate applications with living organisms.
Hard bodied robots are usually powered by electricity, and reliant on either wires or a battery. But these robots are magnetic and free from cumbersome wires.
“The field of small scale robots is a very intensive research field,” said Denys Makarov, one of the study’s researchers. “It’s much newer than the standard industrial robots and therefore people are still doing a lot of exploration, even answering the question, ‘what can they do’?
“Usually, a robot has a battery or some wires to activate it. In our research, the robot is completely untethered. It is without wires. It’s an achievement because mechanical movement is usually very slow and electronics is fast.
“Our robots are at least one order of magnitude faster than similar robots.”
Their rapid response to changing surroundings gives them the potential to be scaled down for biomedical use in confined environments.
Inspiration for the design came by accident, when a researcher began to play with a piece of rubber on a desk.
“Sometimes you need luck and then you come to a very interesting observation,” said Mr Makarov. “When we saw that you can do much more by simply reducing the thickness, then we thought wow, you can fold it very easily, it’s very compliant and it can be activated in a relatively small magnetic field so it’s energy efficient technology.
“As a scientist, you always try to get something new in your research and I think we did a good job here because we have many models of such a simple object.”
The study was a collaboration between researchers at the Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, the Linz Institute of Technology and Johannes Kepler University Linz.
The findings were described in the article Untethered and Ultrafast Soft-bodied Robots, published in Communications Materials on Thursday.
Now that scientists know what is possible, the next step will be adapting the technology to practical applications.
Research began in early 2019 and took a year.
For Mr Xu, validation came after patiently waiting for a fly to land on the petals of a 25mm robot. It all happened so fast, he didn’t know immediately whether his months of research had worked.
"I only saw it after I started to analyse the video and saw, Ok, it really got the fly. At that moment, I was so happy.”
Off-roading in the UAE: How to checklist
Day 3, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Lahiru Gamage, the Sri Lanka pace bowler, has had to play a lot of cricket to earn a shot at the top level. The 29-year-old debutant first played a first-class game 11 years ago. His first Test wicket was one to savour, bowling Pakistan opener Shan Masood through the gate. It set the rot in motion for Pakistan’s batting.
Stat of the day – 73 Haris Sohail took 73 balls to hit a boundary. Which is a peculiar quirk, given the aggressive intent he showed from the off. Pakistan’s batsmen were implored to attack Rangana Herath after their implosion against his left-arm spin in Abu Dhabi. Haris did his best to oblige, smacking the second ball he faced for a huge straight six.
The verdict One year ago, when Pakistan played their first day-night Test at this ground, they held a 222-run lead over West Indies on first innings. The away side still pushed their hosts relatively close on the final night. With the opposite almost exactly the case this time around, Pakistan still have to hope they can salvage a win from somewhere.
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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Fuel economy, combined 9.4L/100km
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7.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh190,000 1,200m.
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TOP 5 DRIVERS 2019
1 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 10 wins 387 points
2 Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 4 wins, 314 points
3 Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 3 wins, 260 points
4 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 2 wins, 249 points
5 Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1 win, 230 points
THE POPE'S ITINERARY
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Borussia Dortmund v Paderborn (11.30pm)
Saturday
Bayer Leverkusen v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)
Werder Bremen v Schalke (6.30pm)
Union Berlin v Borussia Monchengladbach (6.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldof v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)
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Hoffenheim v Mainz (9pm)
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6 UNDERGROUND
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco
2.5 / 5 stars
Bombshell
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Stars: Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie
Four out of five stars
Results
2.15pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Arrab, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
2.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Mahaleel, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel.
3.15pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum handicap (TB) Dh200,000 2,000m; Winner: Dolmen, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
3.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Amang Alawda, Sandro Paiva, Bakhit Al Ketbi.
4.15pm: The Crown Prince of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 1,200m; Winner: AF Alwajel, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
4.45pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 2,000m; Winner: Al Jazi, Jesus Rosales, Eric Lemartinel.
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Start times
5.55am: Wheelchair Marathon Elites
6am: Marathon Elites
7am: Marathon Masses
9am: 10Km Road Race
11am: 4Km Fun Run
MATCH INFO
Schalke 0
Werder Bremen 1 (Bittencourt 32')
Man of the match Leonardo Bittencourt (Werder Bremen)
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
