An artificial muscle that can lift 1,000 times its own weight has been created, laying the groundwork for Terminator-like humanoid robots. Scientists used a 3D printing technique to create the rubber-like synthetic muscle that expands and contracts like its biological counterpart. Heated by a small electric current, the material was capable of expanding to nine times its normal size. In tests it demonstrated enormous strength, having a strain density - the amount of energy stored in each gram of a stretched elastic body - 15 times greater than natural muscle. The device, described as a "soft actuator", was able to lift 1,000 times its own weight, said the researchers whose work is reported in the journal Nature Communications. Artificial muscles may not only be used in robots but also sensitive surgical devices and a host of other applications where gripping and manipulation is important. Co-author Dr Aslan Miriyev, also from the Creative Machines lab, said: "It can push, pull, bend, twist, and lift weight. It's the closest artificial material equivalent we have to a natural muscle." Scientists Creates Artificial Muscle That Can Lift 1,000 Times Its Own Weight By Unknown Wednesday, September 20, 2017 Share Tweet Share Share Email An artificial muscle that can lift 1,000 times its own weight has been created, laying the groundwork for Terminator-like humanoid robots. Scientists used a 3D printing technique to create the rubber-like synthetic muscle that expands and contracts like its biological counterpart. Heated by a small electric current, the material was capable of expanding to nine times its normal size. In tests it demonstrated enormous strength, having a strain density - the amount of energy stored in each gram of a stretched elastic body - 15 times greater than natural muscle. The device, described as a "soft actuator", was able to lift 1,000 times its own weight, said the researchers whose work is reported in the journal Nature Communications. Artificial muscles may not only be used in robots but also sensitive surgical devices and a host of other applications where gripping and manipulation is important. Co-author Dr Aslan Miriyev, also from the Creative Machines lab, said: "It can push, pull, bend, twist, and lift weight. It's the closest artificial material equivalent we have to a natural muscle." No comments Comment Here
