Contents
24 April 2019
Vol 4, Issue 29
Vol 4, Issue 29
Focus
- Programming soft robots with flexible mechanical metamaterials
The complex behavior of highly deformable mechanical metamaterials can substantially enhance the performance of soft robots.
Research Articles
- Autonomous robotic intracardiac catheter navigation using haptic vision
A catheter autonomously navigated a blood-filled heart using enhanced sensing and control with results comparable to expert navigation.
- Millimeter-scale flexible robots with programmable three-dimensional magnetization and motions
New types of flexible microrobots are enabled by patterning discrete 3D magnetization.
- Catalytic antimicrobial robots for biofilm eradication
Magnetically driven catalytic antimicrobial robots eliminate biofilms precisely via a synergistic “kill-degrade-remove” mechanism.
- Ergodicity reveals assistance and learning from physical human-robot interaction
A measure of task information encoded by motion identifies differences between movements that are not captured by standard measures.
- Dynamic DNA material with emergent locomotion behavior powered by artificial metabolism
An emergent locomotion behavior was programmed from a mesoscale DNA material powered by artificial metabolism.
About The Cover
ONLINE COVER A DASH of Bioengineering. A defining feature of living organisms is the ability to use environmental molecules for growth, movement, and other dynamic processes. Hamada et al. made precursor DNA that, when added to a microfluidic device containing pre-patterned boundaries and obstacles, could assemble into polymers, then micrometer-scale hydrogels and last mesoscale patterns and shapes. The DASH (DNA-based Assembly and Synthesis of Hierarchical) materials could be generated and degenerated autonomously and synchronously, allowing further programming to enable locomotion similar to slime mold movement and even "racing" of side-by-side formations. [CREDIT: SHOGO HAMADA/CORNELL UNIVERSITY]
