US university develops world's smallest remote controlled robot, so miniscule you wouldn't see it

Engineers at Northwestern University made the world’s smallest remote controlled robot, and it looks like a teeny tiny crab.

The super small robot is just half a millimeter wide; for context, a grain of rice is around six millimeters. 

But don’t let its tiny size fool you, the little robot is able to walk, bend, twist, crawl, and even jump. 

Its creators think the robot could help pave the way for micro-sized robots that can perform tasks in very small spaces. 

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The tiny remote controlled robot looks like a crab

Robotic technology is advancing and improving at a remarkable rate, with companies like Boston Dynamics working on futuristic bots loaded with AI. 

And back in 2022, a team of roboticists from Northwestern University in the US created the world’s smallest remote controlled robot ever. 

Although the bot didn’t have the sort of tech you’d find on some of the bigger examples out there, it was still able to perform a range of neat moves, including crawling and jumping. 

Pretty impressive when you consider it’s just half a millimeter wide, right?

The tiny bot resembles a crab and has six little ‘legs’ and has an elastic-like resilience. 

It was created using a shape-memory alloy material that will transform to its ‘remembered’ shape when it is heated up.  

Researchers are able to heat up the little bot using a laser targeted at different spots on its ‘body’, making it transform shape and effectively move.

Although it looks cute, it could serve a very useful purpose

The robot being crab-shaped isn’t integral to its purpose; it was just something that ‘inspired’ the team who made it.

“With these assembly techniques and materials concepts, we can build walking robots with almost any size or 3D shapes,” said Northwestern University’s John A. Rogers, who led the team.

“But the students felt inspired and amused by the sideways crawling motions of tiny crabs. It was a creative whim.”

And while it may look cute, the researchers believe it could serve a very useful purpose in the future, as the robot’s diminutive size means it can work in very confined spaces that bigger creations just can’t get into.

“Robotics is an exciting field of research, and the development of microscale robots is a fun topic for academic exploration,” said Rogers. 

“You might imagine micro-robots as agents to repair or assemble small structures or machines in industry or as surgical assistants to clear clogged arteries, to stop internal bleeding, or to eliminate cancerous tumors — all in minimally invasive procedures.”

Small but mighty impressive.

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