What Is a Micro Robot?

A micro robot is a typical micro-electro-mechanical system. Countries around the world have made many achievements in the research of micro robots. ^[1]

The development of micro robots depends on micromachining processes, microsensors, microactuators and

If a micro-robot has the ability to walk (or crawl) automatically, it must have a walking mechanism. At present, the walking mechanisms of micro-robots mainly include:

The wheeled walking mechanism is only suitable for driving on a relatively flat ground.

The crawler-type walking mechanism can travel on uneven ground.

Walking with feet, the most commonly used are four-foot and six-foot walking mechanisms. If walking on uneven ground is required, the mechanism is more complicated.

Stepping peristaltic walking mechanism relying on inertia or automatic telescoping.

The propelling drive mechanism in the liquid by propeller or other means. ^[4]

At present, the development of micro robots has the following three categories:

(1) Fixed micro robot . It looks like stones, trees, flowers and plants

Micro robots can work at the atomic level. For example, a surgeon can remotely control a micro-robot to perform a millimeter-level retinal surgery. Under the condition of eye movement, the elastic retina or individual pathological cells are excised and the severed nerve is switched on. It can travel through the patient's body or blood vessels and once the cancer cells are found, Kill them and scrape away the fat accumulated on the aorta; you can put a micro-robot gastroscope into the stomach to carry out a full examination of the stomach.

Micro robots can also be used in precision manufacturing processes, using them to manufacture computer memory chips with larger storage capacities, and "super-plane grinders" with extremely high processing accuracy. The working ability of micro-robots has reached the molecular and atomic levels, and has far exceeded the artist's ability to paint on hair.

The application of micro-robot technology can make a variety of aerospace measurements lighter, household appliances such as tape recorders will become more compact and versatile, and TV screens can be made large and thin. The brightness of the light can be automatically controlled by a micro robot directly. Micro robots will also revolutionize mechanics.

The application fields of micro and ultra-miniature robots are very broad. It can be used in marine, agricultural, communications, aerospace, home and medical fields. For example: Throwing down tens of thousands of micro-robots to chew shellfish and moss on the bottom of the ship can save navigational energy; scattering thousands of micro-robots in crop fields, allowing them to bite pests, and reduce agricultural damage. A good harvest; the flying micro-robot flies on the field carrying a hygrometer and an infrared sensor. When it finds a drought in the farmland, it falls on the valve of the irrigation system, transmits the drought information to the sensor, opens the valve, and irrigates the farmland quantitatively. .

Micro-robots can carry cameras and micro-fibers to enter the environment where humans cannot reach to inspect the environment, store or transmit images. After the local cable was broken, tens of thousands of micro-robots crawled along the cable. When they climbed to the end of the cable, they let both hands rest on the front-end broken head, so the micro-robot became the connecting wire and remained on the cable permanently.

Micro-robots can clean and repair space telescopes, inspect spacecraft heat shields, and de-ice aircraft hoods. If a large number of flying micro-robots are deployed on other planets, the robots can send back all kinds of required information.

In addition to the above functions, the mini-robot can also send a whistle near the shops and warehouses every night to prevent theft from entering. In addition, the micro-robot can also remove dust in the shelter of the house and enter the internal inspection and maintenance of household appliances.