Scientists are developing an ultra-sensitive robotic finger that could help detect breast cancer.
Experts have developed a device with an advanced sense of touch that can measure the patient’s pulse and check for abnormal lumps.
The technology could make it easier for doctors to detect diseases such as breast cancer at their early stages, when they are more treatable.
And it can also help patients feel comfortable during physical exams that can seem uncomfortable and invasive, the researchers said.
Although rigid robotic fingers already exist, experts have raised concerns that these devices may not be suitable for the delicate tasks required in a doctor’s office.
Experts have developed a device with an advanced sense of touch that can measure the patient’s pulse and check for abnormal lumps
The technology could make it easier for doctors to detect diseases such as breast cancer at their early stages, when they are more treatable. And it can also help patients feel comfortable during physical exams that can seem uncomfortable and invasive, the researchers said (stock image)
Some have raised potential safety concerns, including fears that overzealous robot fingers could rupture lumps during examinations.
To get around this, the team from the University of Science and Technology of China developed a simple device that contains conductive fiber coils in two parts.
It includes a coil wrapped around each air chamber of the device’s bending actuators — the parts allow the device to move — and a twisted liquid metal fiber mounted on the fingertip.
They discovered that by measuring how the device’s electrical current flows, they could monitor in real time how far the finger bends when it touches an object and the force on the fingertip.
This way, the device can sense the properties of an object – how soft or firm it is – as effectively as human touch.
While mounted on a robotic arm, the finger correctly located an artery on a participant’s wrist and took his pulse
Tests show the device can sense a feather against his fingertip, detect a glass rod and even identify three lumps embedded in a large silicone sheet.
While mounted on a robotic arm, the finger also correctly located an artery on a participant’s wrist and took his pulse.
In the journal Cell Reports Physical Science, the researchers write: ‘People can easily recognize the stiffness of various objects by simply pressing them with their finger.
“Similarly, because the (device) can sense both the bending deformation and the force on the fingertip, it can detect a stiffness similar to that of our human hand by simply pressing an object.”
In addition to recording pulses and examining simulated lumps, the researchers found that the robot finger can type “like a human hand” and spell the word “hello.”
Author Hongbo Wang said: ‘Through further development to improve its efficiency, we also believe that a dexterous hand made of such fingers can act as a ‘Robodoctor’ in a future hospital, just like a doctor.
‘Combined with machine learning, automatic robotic examinations and diagnoses can be achieved, which is especially beneficial for these underdeveloped areas where there is a serious shortage of healthcare workers.’