MIT researchers have created a slim, two‑dimensional swimming robot powered by living muscle cells instead of a traditional motor. The paper-thin device, about the size of a gum drop, uses a hair-thin muscle layer that responds to light to propel propulsion, achieving roughly four body-length moves in a minute. The team argues biohybrid designs could be cheaper and potentially more efficient than bulky alternatives, with soft, self-healing tissue offering adaptability in delicate environments. Future work aims to optimize design for faster swimming, enabling environmental monitoring or microsurgical tasks where conventional hardware fails. The study highlights a path toward delicate, self‑repairing robots capable of navigating fragile or unpredictable surroundings.
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MIT engineers built a small, light, two-dimensional swimming robot powered by living muscle cells rather than a conventional motor, representing a novel biohybrid approach.
The robot is described as paper-thin and roughly the size of a stick of gum, with a muscle layer thinner than a human hair that is stimulated by light to drive movement.
In maze-like testing, the robot swam at about four times its body length per minute, signaling notable strength for its diminutive size.
Researchers contend that such biohybrid systems could be cheaper to produce and potentially more efficient than typical, bulkier biohybrid robots that use millions of cells.
The next goals include optimizing the body design to achieve faster swimming and exploring applications in environmental monitoring or tasks too delicate for rigid hardware.