Watch A Shapeshifting Robot Liquefy, ‘Escape Jail’ Then Return To Normal

Shapeshifters could be closer to reality than you’d expect. Scientists recently made a stunning breakthrough when a miniature person-shaped robot liquefied to “escape” a cage, before reforming into its solid state again.

In the impressive video of the experiment, the robot can be seen completing an obstacle course, during which it melts down into a puddle and “moves” through the bars of a cage before getting back up into its original form. 

As Interesting Engineering points out, this innovation brings back memories of T-1000 from Terminator 2. Like the robot in the video, this one was able to change its shape at will. The real-world example, in addition, comes with magnetic properties and can conduct electricity. 

The material, which is dubbed a “magnetoactive solid-liquid phase transitional machine,” was inspired by the ocean’s sea cucumbers. Experts say the creation exhibits “the best of soft and traditional hard-bodied robots,” allowing androids to have an even wider range of functions.

In order to move the material out of the cage, the researchers embedded magnetic particles into gallium, a metal with a low melting point (85.64 °F). This makes it responsive to moving via magnetic fields, and allows it to be easily heated up and turned into a liquid.

According to the publication, this particular robot differentiates itself from other “shapeshifters” due to the fact it doesn’t require heat guns, electric currents, or external heat sources to switch states. Its liquid phase is also said to be less vicious than other materials, making it more “liquid.”

Going forward, the team believes the innovation could be used to deliver drugs to patients in new, exciting ways. For example, the robot could be used to send medicine into a stomach, while removing a foreign object from the same organ. 

Furthermore, it could be used in professions such as engineering. In one experiment, the material seeped into hard-to-reach circuits and repaired them by being both the solder and conductor for electricians. 

“Future work should further explore how these robots could be used within a biomedical context. What we’re showing are just one-off demonstrations, proofs of concept, but much more study will be required to delve into how this could actually be used,” says senior author Carmel Majidi. 

[via Interesting Engineering and Wang and Pan et al, images via Wang and Pan et al]