Progress and Prospects of Micro/Nano-robots in Medical Applications

Abstract

Along with the development of science and technology, micro/nano-robots bring more possibilities to medical surgery. The research and development of micro/nano-robots is vital because precision and the ability to work in a microscale environment can break through the bottleneck of current human medical surgery. However, the traditional type of design and research has some deficiencies, flaws in the design, and some technical issues during the process that obstruct further developments. The review is based on the progress and prospects of micro/nano-robots in medical applications. This review focuses on the principle of nano/micro-robots, the technical routes, the challenges current research teams are facing, and future perspectives. This study summarized the research and experimental reports of relevant professional teams. In summary, the researchers have already developed many kinds of actions and the combination of microorganisms and artificial structures. Currently, many ways of actuation have been invented to suit the robot in different applications, but there are still problems with efficiency, biocompatibility, or positioning and navigation. This research also discusses the challenges and outlook throughout nanorobot research.