Invited Paper MN+BI-ThM10
Biopsy with Untethered Microgrippers

Thursday, November 10, 2016, 11:00 am, Room 102B

An important requirement to enable the vision of the Fantastic Voyage is to develop tiny mechanized devices that can be used to perform functional surgical tasks. As an example, I will describe a decade long effort in our laboratory to develop sub-millimeter sized biopsy forceps in the shape of hands or microgrippers. I will discuss challenges in fabrication, materials choice, deployment, guidance, safety, power harvesting and practical surgical operation of these devices. In addition to in vitro and ex vivo studies, I will discuss in vivo operation of such devices in live pigs to enable statistical sampling of tissues, targeted biopsy and drug delivery. I will also discuss the creation of microgrippers out of bioresorbable and biodegradable silicon based and polymer materials as well as devices as small as single red blood cells. Our studies highlight feasibility and proof-of-concept for the implementation of small untethered devices in medicine and surgery.