Robot or Flea?... Development of the World's Smallest Remote-Controlled Robot [Reading Science]

Northwestern University Research Team in the United States

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A research team at Northwestern University in the United States has created the world's smallest robot, smaller than a flea, that can walk and jump through remote control.

The research team led by Professors John A. Rogers and Yonggang Huang from the McCormick School of Engineering at the university published a paper containing these findings on the 25th (local time) in the international academic journal Science Robotics.

This tiny robot, measuring 0.5mm and resembling a crab, can bend its legs, twist its body, crawl, walk, turn, and even jump. It is the smallest remote-controlled walking robot ever made by humans, smaller than a flea. It does not use complex hardware such as hydraulic devices or electric motors. Instead, it utilizes the elasticity of its own body. It uses shape-memory alloy materials that deform into a remembered shape when heated. The robot is remotely controlled by laser, and its walking direction can also be determined.

The research team had previously created 1mm-sized robots resembling maggots, crickets, and beetles. In September last year, they also created the world's smallest micro flying device, which was selected as the cover model of the international academic journal Nature.

The research team believes that this micro-robot technology will accelerate the day when various tasks such as surgery, repair, bonding, and improvement can be performed in cracks of bodies, machines, and structures. Regarding this, Professor Huang said, "Our technology can control various movements and walk half a body length per second, which was a difficult technology to achieve for micro-sized robots on the ground." Professor Rogers added, "Micro-robots could also be used as tools for assembling and repairing small structures, cleaning clogged arteries, stopping internal bleeding, or removing cancer tumors during surgery."