Tiny origami robot unfolds in stomach / Un piccolo robot Origami si srotola nello stomaco. Segnalato dal Dott. Giuseppe Cotellessa / Reported by Dr. Joseph Cotellessa (Credit: Melanie Gonick/MIT) Researchers at MIT, Sheffield University, and the Tokyo Institute of Technology, have developed a minute origami robot that unfolds in the stomach once ingested. The robot contains of a layer of biodegradable material called Biolefin that shrinks when heated. This is placed between two structural layers of dried pig intestine similar to what is used in sausage casings. After being swallowed, the capsule that houses the robot is dissolved and the structure begins to expand, taking on a rectangular shape with accordion folds perpendicular to its long axis. A magnet embedded in one of the forward folds allows the robot to be controlled externally. According to the researchers, the forces applied to the robot from outside the body are mainly rotational. A quick rotation of
