A group of scientists has invented a shape-shifting robot that can switch between liquid and solid states, and has magnetic capabilities.
“Giving robots the ability to switch between a liquid and a solid state gives them more functionality,” said Chengfeng Pan, an engineer at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, who led the study.
For his part, Carmel Majidi of Carnegie Mellon University, a senior author on the project, said the idea was inspired by sea cucumbers, which can change their hardness very quickly.
Smithsonian magazine stated that traditional robots cannot always reach small spaces because of their solid bodies, so scientists decided to create a robot that transforms between solid and liquid.
The robot is made of gallium metal, which melts at just under 86 degrees Fahrenheit. The scientists have also placed magnetic particles in the metal, which will allow them to control how the robot moves or melts using magnets.
“The magnetic particles here have two roles, one is that they make the material respond to an alternating magnetic field, so you can heat the material and cause it to change, and the second is that it gives robots the ability to move in response to the magnetic field,” Majidi said in a statement.
The study said that the robot can liquefy to escape from confined spaces before the world returns it to its original shape, according to Sky News Arabia.
She added that the robot also “jumped over trenches, climbed walls, and even broke in half, and could be very useful in the field of biomedicine.”
“More study will be needed to delve deeper into how this can actually be used for drug delivery or for foreign body removal,” Majidi said.
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