Nanoscale· 2012Q1· Review
Bio-inspired magnetic swimming microrobots for biomedical applications
- 806citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2012year
Short summary
Magnetic microrobots inspired by E. coli bacteria can swim in viscous fluids using helical propulsion, with torque-driven actuation showing better scalability to micro/nano-scales than force-driven methods.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Microrobots can navigate viscous fluids using bio-inspired locomotion, particularly helical propulsion like E. coli.
- Magnetic actuation methods include rotating fields, oscillating fields, or field gradients, categorized as force- or torque-driven.
- Torque-driven actuation is more scalable to micro- and nano-scales compared to force-driven actuation.
- Swarm control of multiple microrobots is discussed for in vivo and in vitro applications, with preliminary results on agent decoupling shown.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Microrobots have been proposed for future biomedical applications in which they are able to navigate in viscous fluidic environments. Nature has inspired numerous microrobotic locomotion designs, which are suitable for propulsion generation at low Reynolds numbers. This article reviews the various swimming methods with particular focus on helical propulsion inspired by E. coli bacteria. There are various magnetic actuation methods for biomimetic and non-biomimetic microrobots, such as rotating fields, oscillating fields, or field gradients. They can be categorized into force-driven or torque-driven actuation methods. Both approaches are reviewed and a previous publication has shown that torque-driven actuation scales better to the micro- and nano-scale than force-driven actuation. Finally, the implementation of swarm or multi-agent control is discussed. The use of multiple microrobots may be beneficial for in vivo as well as in vitro applications. Thus, the frequency-dependent behavior of helical microrobots is discussed and preliminary experimental results are presented showing the decoupling of an individual agent within a group of three microrobots.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Nanoscale, 2012 · DOI ↗
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Field: Condensed Matter Physics
Condensed Matter PhysicsPhysics and Astronomy