Georgia Institute of Technology Institute for Robotics and Intelligent Machines

Researchers have created a new type of tiny 3D-printed robot that moves by harnessing vibration from piezoelectric actuators, ultrasound sources or even tiny speakers. Swarms of these “micro-bristle-bots” might work together to sense environmental changes, move materials – or perhaps one day repair injuries inside the human body.

For environmental monitoring, precision agriculture, infrastructure maintenance and certain security applications, slow and energy efficient can be better than fast and always needing a recharge. That’s where “SlothBot” comes in.

A TEDx Talk from ECE Ph.D. Student Celine Irvene.

NIH ranks researcher’s proposal with its best possible score