Micro Nanorobotic Manipulation Systems And Their Applications

Micro/Nano Robotics and Automation technologies have rapidly grown associated with the growth of Micro and Nanotechnologies. This book presents a summary of fundamentals in micro-nano scale engineering and the current state of the art of these technologies. “Micro-Nanorobotic Manipulation Systems and their Applications” introduces these advanced technologies from the basics and applications aspects of Micro/Nano-Robotics and Automation from the prospective micro/nano-scale manipulation. The book is organized in 9 chapters including an overview chapter of Micro/Nanorobotics and Automation technology from the historical view and important related research works. Further chapters are devoted to the physics of micro-nano fields as well as to material and science, microscopes, fabrication technology, importance of biological cell, and control techniques. Furthermore important examples, applications and a concise summary of Micro-Nanorobotics and Automation technologies are given.

Micro/Nano-robotics for Biomedical Applications features a system approach and incorporates modern methodologies in autonomous mobile robots for programmable and controllable micro/nano-robots aiming at biomedical applications. The book provides chapters of instructional materials in micro/nanorobotics for biomedical applications. The book features lecture units on micro/nanorobot components and techniques, including sensors, actuator, power supply, and micro/nano-fabrication and assembly. It also contains case studies on using micro/nano-robots in biomedical environments and in biomedicine, as well as a design example to conceptually develop a Vitamin-pill sized robot to enter human’s gastrointestinal tract. Laboratory modules to teach robot navigation and cooperation methods suitable to biomedical applications will be also provided based on existing simulation and robot platforms.

Nanorobots can be defined as intelligent systems with overall dimensions at or below the micrometer range that are made of assemblies of nanoscale components with individual dimensions ranging between 1 to 100 nm. These devices can now perform a wide variety of tasks at the nanoscale in a wide variety of fields including but not limited to fields such as manufacturing, medicine, supply chain, biology, and aerospace. Nanorobotics: Current Approaches and Techniques offers a comprehensive overview of this emerging interdisciplinary field with a wide ranging discussion that includes nano-manipulation and industrial nanorobotics, nanorobotic manipulation in biology and medicine, nanorobotic sensing, navigation and swarm behavior and CNT, and protein and DNA-based nanorobotics.

Nanotechnology will allow us to build devices smaller than previously thought possible and will bring fundamental changes to disciplines within engineering, chemistry, medicine, biology, and physics. Understanding the principles of nano manipulation and assembly is tremendously important for those aiming to develop nanoscale systems. This forward-looking resource offers you cutting-edge coverage of the fundamentals and latest applications in this burgeoning field from an engineering perspective. The book shows you how nano-manipulation allows for the detection and manipulation of tiny entities such as single molecules, nanotubes, nanocubes, cells, viruses, proteins, and DNA molecules. You discover the most promising nanorobotic manipulation and assembly methods and find clear examples of key application areas, including nano sensors, electronics, and biomedical engineering. Supported with over 100 illustrations, this groundbreaking volumes offers comprehensive coverage of the subject, from the physics of nano manipulation... to robotic assembly of nano devices. Moreover, you get a glimpse of the future direction of this revolutionary technological area.

The second edition of this handbook provides a state-of-the-art overview on the various aspects in the rapidly developing field of robotics. Reaching for the human frontier, robotics is vigorously engaged in the growing challenges of new emerging domains. Interacting, exploring, and working with humans, the new generation of robots will increasingly touch people and their lives. The credible prospect of practical robots among humans is the result of the scientific endeavour of a half a century of robotic developments that established robotics as a modern scientific discipline. The ongoing vibrant expansion and strong growth of the field during the last decade has fueled this second edition of the Springer Handbook of Robotics. The first edition of the handbook soon became a landmark in robotics publishing and won the American Association of Publishers PROSE Award for Excellence in Physical Sciences & Mathematics as well as the organization’s Award for Engineering & Technology. The second edition of the handbook, edited by two internationally renowned scientists with the support of an outstanding team of seven part editors and more than 200 authors, continues to be an authoritative reference for robotics researchers, newcomers to the field, and scholars from related disciplines. The contents have been restructured to achieve four main objectives: the enlargement of foundational topics for robotics, the enlightenment of design of various types of robotic systems, the extension of the treatment on robots moving in the environment, and the enrichment of advanced robotics applications. Further to an extensive update, fifteen new chapters have been introduced on emerging topics, and a new generation of authors have joined the handbook’s team. A novel addition to the second edition is a comprehensive collection of multimedia references to more than 700 videos, which bring valuable insight into the contents. The videos can be viewed directly augmented into the text with a smartphone or tablet using a unique and specially designed app. Springer Handbook of Robotics Multimedia Extension Portal: http://handbookofrobotics.org/

The Encyclopedia of Medical Robotics combines contributions in four distinct areas of Medical robotics, namely: Minimally Invasive Surgical Robotics, Micro and Nano Robotics in Medicine, Image-guided Surgical Procedures and Interventions, and Rehabilitation Robotics. The volume on Minimally Invasive Surgical Robotics focuses on robotic technologies geared towards challenges and opportunities in minimally invasive surgery and the research, design, implementation and clinical use of minimally invasive robotic systems. The volume on Micro and Nano robotics in Medicine is dedicated to research activities in an area of emerging interdisciplinary technology that is raising new scientific challenges and promising revolutionary advancement in applications such as medicine and biology. The size and range of these systems are at or below the micrometer scale and comprise assemblies of micro and nanoscale components. The volume on Image-guided Surgical Procedures and Interventions focuses primarily on the use of image guidance during surgical procedures and the challenges posed by various imaging environments and how they related to the design and development of robotic systems as well as their clinical applications. This volume also has significant contributions from the clinical viewpoint on some of the challenges in the domain of image-guided interventions. Finally, the volume on Rehabilitation Robotics is dedicated to the state-of-the-art of an emerging interdisciplinary field where robotics, sensors, and feedback are used in novel ways to re-learn, improve, or restore functional movements in humans.Volume 1, Minimally Invasive Surgical Robotics, focuses on an area of robotic applications that was established in the late 1990s, after the first robotics-assisted minimally invasive surgical procedure. This area has since received significant attention from industry and researchers. The teleoperated and ergonomic features of these robotic systems for minimally invasive surgery (MIS) have been able to reduce or eliminate most of the drawbacks of conventional (laparoscopic) MIS. Robotics-assisted MIS procedures have been conducted on over 3 million patients to date — primarily in the areas of urology, gynecology and general surgery using the FDA approved da Vinci® surgical system. The significant commercial and clinical success of the da Vinci® system has resulted in substantial research activity in recent years to reduce invasiveness, increase dexterity, provide additional features such as image guidance and haptic feedback, reduce size and cost, increase portability, and address specific clinical procedures. The area of robotic MIS is therefore in a state of rapid growth fueled by new developments in technologies such as continuum robotics, smart materials, sensing and actuation, and haptics and teleoperation. An important need arising from the incorporation of robotic technology for surgery is that of training in the appropriate use of the technology, and in the assessment of acquired skills. This volume covers the topics mentioned above in four sections. The first section gives an overview of the evolution and current state the da Vinci® system and clinical perspectives from three groups who use it on a regular basis. The second focuses on the research, and describes a number of new developments in surgical robotics that are likely to be the basis for the next generation of robotic MIS systems. The third deals with two important aspects of surgical robotic systems — teleoperation and haptics (the sense of touch). Technology for implementing the latter in a clinical setting is still very much at the research stage. The fourth section focuses on surgical training and skills assessment necessitated by the novelty and complexity of the technologies involved and the need to provide reliable and efficient training and objective assessment in the use of robotic MIS systems.In Volume 2, Micro and Nano Robotics in Medicine, a brief historical overview of the field of medical nanorobotics as well as the state-of-the-art in the field is presented in the introductory chapter. It covers the various types of nanorobotic systems, their applications and future directions in this field. The volume is divided into three themes related to medical applications. The first theme describes the main challenges of microrobotic design for propulsion in vascular media. Such nanoscale robotic agents are envisioned to revolutionize medicine by enabling minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. To be useful, nanorobots must be operated in complex biological fluids and tissues, which are often difficult to penetrate. In this section, a collection of four papers review the potential medical applications of motile nanorobots, catalytic-based propelling agents, biologically-inspired microrobots and nanoscale bacteria-enabled autonomous drug delivery systems. The second theme relates to the use of micro and nanorobots inside the body for drug-delivery and surgical applications. A collection of six chapters is presented in this segment. The first chapter reviews the different robot structures for three different types of surgery, namely laparoscopy, catheterization, and ophthalmic surgery. It highlights the progress of surgical microrobotics toward intracorporeally navigated mechanisms for ultra-minimally invasive interventions. Then, the design of different magnetic actuation platforms used in micro and nanorobotics are described. An overview of magnetic actuation-based control methods for microrobots, with eventually biomedical applications, is also covered in this segment. The third theme discusses the various nanomanipulation strategies that are currently used in biomedicine for cell characterization, injection, fusion and engineering. In-vitro (3D) cell culture has received increasing attention since it has been discovered to provide a better simulation environment of in-vivo cell growth. Nowadays, the rapid progress of robotic technology paves a new path for the highly controllable and flexible 3D cell assembly. One chapter in this segment discusses the applications of micro-nano robotic techniques for 3D cell culture using engineering approaches. Because cell fusion is important in numerous biological events and applications, such as tissue regeneration and cell reprogramming, a chapter on robotic-tweezers cell manipulation system to achieve precise laser-induced cell fusion using optical trapping has been included in this volume. Finally, the segment ends with a chapter on the use of novel MEMS-based characterization of micro-scale tissues instead of mechanical characterization for cell lines studies.Volume 3, Image-guided Surgical Procedures and Interventions, focuses on several aspects ranging from understanding the challenges and opportunities in this domain, to imaging technologies, to image-guided robotic systems for clinical applications. The volume includes several contributions in the area of imaging in the areas of X-Ray fluoroscopy, CT, PET, MR Imaging, Ultrasound imaging, and optical coherence tomography. Ultrasound-based diagnostics and therapeutics as well as ultrasound-guided planning and navigation are also included in this volume in addition to multi-modal imaging techniques and its applications to surgery and various interventions. The application of multi-modal imaging and fusion in the area of prostate biopsy is also covered. Imaging modality compatible robotic systems, sensors and actuator technologies for use in the MRI environment are also included in this work., as is the development of the framework incorporating image-guided modeling for surgery and intervention. Finally, there are several chapters in the clinical applications domain covering cochlear implant surgery, neurosurgery, breast biopsy, prostate cancer treatment, endovascular interventions, neurovascular interventions, robotic capsule endoscopy, and MRI-guided neurosurgical procedures and interventions.Volume 4, Rehabilitation Robotics, is dedicated to the state-of-the-art of an emerging interdisciplinary field where robotics, sensors, and feedback are used in novel ways to relearn, improve, or restore functional movements in humans. This volume attempts to cover a number of topics relevant to the field. The first section addresses an important activity in our daily lives: walking, where the neuromuscular system orchestrates the gait, posture, and balance. Conditions such as stroke, vestibular deficits, or old age impair this important activity. Three chapters on robotic training, gait rehabilitation, and cooperative orthoses describe the current works in the field to address this issue. The second section covers the significant advances in and novel designs of soft actuators and wearable systems that have emerged in the area of prosthetic lower limbs and ankles in recent years, which offer potential for both rehabilitation and human augmentation. These are described in two chapters. The next section addresses an important emphasis in the field of medicine today that strives to bring rehabilitation out from the clinic into the home environment, so that these medical aids are more readily available to users. The current state-of-the-art in this field is described in a chapter. The last section focuses on rehab devices for the pediatric population. Their impairments are life-long and rehabilitation robotics can have an even bigger impact during their lifespan. In recent years, a number of new developments have been made to promote mobility, socialization, and rehabilitation among the very young: the infants and toddlers. These aspects are summarized in two chapters of this volume.

This book presents methodological and application research in detecting cellular and molecular biophysical properties based on atomic force microscopy (AFM) nanorobotics. Series methods for in situ label-free visualizing and quantifying the multiple physical properties of single cells and single molecules were developed, including immobilization strategies for observing fine structures of living cells, measurements of single-cell mechanics, force recognition of molecular interactions, and mapping protein organizations on cell surface. The biomedical applications of these methods in clinical lymphoma treatments were explored in detail, including primary sample preparation, cancer cell recognition, AFM detection and data analysis. Future directions about the biomedical applications of AFM are also given.

Micro/Nano mechatronics is currently used in broader spectra, ranging from basic applications in robotics, actuators, sensors, semiconductors, automobiles, and machine tools. As a strategic technology highlighting the 21st century, this technology is extended to new applications in bio-medical systems and life science, construction machines, and aerospace equipment, welfare/human life engineering, and other brand new scopes. Basically, the miniaturizing technology is important to realize high performance, low energy consumption, low cost performance, small space instrumentation, light-weight, and so on. This book presents the summary of our project Center of Excellence for Education and Research of Micro-Nano Mechatronics. The project implements a strategy to realize applications of micro-nano mechatronics, which are based on mechanical engineering or materials science, control systems engineering, and advanced medical engineering. The chapters describe the research advances in micro/nano measurement and control, micro/nano design and manufacturing, nano materials science, and their applications in biomedical engineering. The publication of this book was supported by Nagoya University, the 21st COE program "Micro- and NanoMechatronics for Information-Based Society," and the global COE program “COE for Education and Research of Micro-Nano Mechatronics.”