The explorer is as flexible as the sea slug

US researchers have created a flexible and flexible robot, inspired by the design of the slug, for exploration.

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have created a flexible polymer robot inspired by the muscle structure of the sea slug.

"Even if it's just under 5cm, this little robot is great." We're building a living machine - a biological hybrid robot, " said robot designer and graduate student Victoria Webster.

Robot simulates the flexibility and movement of the slug. (Source: Cnet.com).

The team wanted a flexible robot, unlike the usual hard-core robot. They used collagen from the snout's skin to create a flexible shell for the robot's polymer body.

Nudibranchs have their own energy source. Because marine mammals are so well adapted, simulated marine creatures can also adapt to changes in temperature, salinity and other environmental changes such as seafloor pressures. This robot is used for deep-sea exploration, especially in bumpy places where divers can not penetrate.

After testing the use of cells, the team designed the robot with muscles simulating the muscle and cheek muscles of California snails and a flexible body. When activated, the muscles expand and the arms of the robot move.

Now the new robot can move at 4mm per minute. But the team plans to build a more sophisticated version that uses nodes, nerves, and nerve bundles to send signals from the brain to the muscles of animals.

"Thanks to the lymph nodes, the muscles are much more capable of movement than the use of an artificial brain, " Webster said.