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Updated: Jul 23, 2025
05:43
Four-Dimensional Printing of Stimuli-Responsive Hydrogel-Based Soft Robots
Published on: January 13, 2023
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Customizable single-layer hydrogel robot with programmable NIR-triggered responsiveness
Kun Wei1, Xingmiao Fang1, Chenlong Tang1
1School of Biomedical Engineering, Biomedical Robotics Laboratory, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China. yangrunhuai@ahmu.edu.cn.
Lab on a Chip
|July 14, 2023
Summary
Researchers developed a single-layer hydrogel robot using high-precision 3D printing. This innovation enables rapid fabrication of complex structures for advanced biomedical applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Materials Science
- Robotics
Background:
- Hydrogel robots offer biocompatibility and responsiveness for biomedical uses.
- Conventional methods struggle with rapid, complex hydrogel fabrication and often require multi-material designs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce a novel single-layer hydrogel robot fabricated via high-precision digital light processing (H-P DLP) 3D printing.
- To demonstrate a simplified approach for creating complex, responsive hydrogel structures.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a high-precision digital light processing (H-P DLP) 3D printing system.
- Fabricated single-layer hydrogel robots with inherent structural complexity.
- Designed and tested custom hydrogel robot grippers for specific tasks.
Main Results:
- Successfully fabricated single-layer hydrogel robots in a single step.
- Demonstrated robots with structural variations capable of repetitive responses.
- Showcased programmable hydrogel grippers with potential for cargo delivery.
Conclusions:
- The H-P DLP 3D printing method offers a new pathway for creating complex, responsive hydrogel robots.
- This approach simplifies fabrication and expands possibilities for irregular hydrogel structures.
- The developed hydrogel robots show promise for advancing biomedical applications, including targeted delivery and manipulation.
