For the first time ever, wireless millirobots navigated a narrow blood vessel both along and against arterial flow. Researchers from the University of Twente and Radboudumc inserted the screw-shaped robots in a detached aorta with kidneys where they controlled them using a robotically controlled rotating magnet. The researchers plan to further develop the technology to be able to remove blood clots.
They have a simple way of making these so small and yet self-powered. The researchers used a robotically controlled rotating magnetic field to control the millirobots wirelessly. With an X-ray machine, they were able to localize the millirobot while steering through the aorta. They were also 3D printed, another step in simplification.
However, as with every proof of concept demonstration, widespread adoption is some way off - the question is when.
They have a simple way of making these so small and yet self-powered. The researchers used a robotically controlled rotating magnetic field to control the millirobots wirelessly. With an X-ray machine, they were able to localize the millirobot while steering through the aorta. They were also 3D printed, another step in simplification.
However, as with every proof of concept demonstration, widespread adoption is some way off - the question is when.