A tiny robot that weighs no more than a bouncy ball can pull objects nearly 2,000 times its size — the equivalent of a human pulling a blue whale, according to researchers at Stanford University.
This robot, called a MicroTug, can also hoist an object 100 times its weight vertically up a glass surface, which researchers say is the equivalent of a human climbing up a skyscraper while carrying an elephant.
At Stanford University’s Biomimetics and Dextrous Manipulation Lab, a team of researchers looked to nature when designing the miniature robots and emulated the uniquely grippy feet of ants and geckos that help them climb surfaces.
As a result, the MicroTug uses strong directional adhesives to tightly grip a surface. The robot, equipped with a large winch, tow cable and hook, then uses its onboard motors to pull the objects. The researchers use 3-D printers to make the parts.
In the video below, the 12g MicroTug pulls off some pretty impressive feats, like pulling a 600g coffee mug. The miniature robots suggest that adhesion can dramatically outperform friction robots.
The project’s researchers see the miniature robots, which only cost about $20 to make, as a launching pad for bigger things to come. They are now looking at ways to make multiple MicroTugs work together as a team and then plan to scale the technology up to larger robots that have much more force.
In the future, researchers say we could see these types of robots pulling objects out of hard-to-reach spots or even sent into a burning building to find survivors.
