Necrobotics

Demonstration of the concept[1]
A "necrobotic" gripper is fashioned from a dead spider and used to lift objects.[1]
Procedure explanation[1]

Necrobotics is the practice of using biotic materials (or dead organisms) as robotic components.[1] In July 2022, researchers in the Preston Innovation Lab at Rice University in Houston, Texas published a paper in Advanced Science introducing the concept and demonstrating its capability by repurposing dead spiders as robotic grippers and applying pressurized air to activate their gripping arms.[1][2][3][4][5]

Necrobotics utilizes the spider's organic hydraulic system and their compact legs to create an efficient and simple gripper system. The necrobotic spider gripper is capable of lifting small and light objects, thereby serving as an alternative to complex and costly small mechanical grippers.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d e Yap, Te Faye; Liu, Zhen; Rajappan, Anoop; Shimokusu, Trevor J.; Preston, Daniel J. (July 25, 2022). "Necrobotics: Biotic Materials as Ready-to-Use Actuators". Advanced Science. 9 (29): e2201174. doi:10.1002/advs.202201174. ISSN 2198-3844. PMC 9561765. PMID 35875913. S2CID 251038837.
  2. ^ Ackerman, Evan (July 26, 2022). "Necrobotics: Dead Spiders Reincarnated as Robot Grippers". IEEE Spectrum. Archived from the original on July 29, 2022. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  3. ^ Williams, Mike (July 25, 2022). "Rice engineers get a grip with 'necrobotic' spiders". Rice News. Rice University. Archived from the original on 2022-07-29. Retrieved 2022-07-29.
  4. ^ "Scientists turned dead spiders into robots". Science News. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  5. ^ Vincent, James (July 28, 2022). "Scientists reanimate dead spiders as robot gripping claws". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 29, 2022. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  6. ^ "Necrobotics: Dead Spiders Reincarnated as Robot Grippers - IEEE Spectrum". IEEE. Retrieved 2023-10-19.