Scientists have developed a remarkable liquid robot that blurs the line between machines and living organisms.
Created by researchers from Seoul National University and Gachon University, the robot is made from liquid metal coated with a dense armour of microscopic particles and embedded with magnetic particles that allow it to be controlled remotely.
Unlike conventional robots built from rigid components, this soft robot can dramatically change its shape, squeeze through openings smaller than its own diameter, split into multiple droplets, merge back into one body and even engulf foreign objects before carrying them away.
The study, published in Science Advances, introduces a new class of particle-armoured liquid robots that combine the fluidity of liquids with the stability of solid materials.
Inspired by the behaviour of biological cells, the technology could eventually transform fields ranging from minimally invasive medicine to industrial inspection and disaster response.What makes the particle-armoured liquid robot different?Soft robotics has advanced rapidly over the past decade, but one challenge has remained difficult to overcome: creating robots that are both highly deformable and mechanically stable.
