Electromagnetic drive of microrobot geometrically constrained in blood vessel

We propose new electromagnetic actuation of a microrobot by utilizing geometric constraints in a blood vessel. In our concept, a microrobot travels in a vascular network while keeping the contact to the vascular wall. In the paper, forces working on the microrobot are modeled in two dimensions, and conditions to propel the microrobot while pushing it against the vascular wall are described. The design of the microrobot composed of three permanent magnets is also presented. The feasibility of the 2D actuation of the microrobot was confirmed using an experimental setup composed of four pairs of coils generating both uniform magnetic fields and uniform magnetic field gradients. Finally, the model was extended to 3D in order to investigate 3D actuation of the microrobot.