Design, optimization and characterization of bio-hybrid actuators based on 3D-bioprinted skeletal muscle tissue

Mestre, Rafael, Patiño, Tania, Guix, Maria, Barceló, Xavier and Sánchez, Samuel (2019) Design, optimization and characterization of bio-hybrid actuators based on 3D-bioprinted skeletal muscle tissue. In Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics). vol. 11556 LNAI, Springer Nature. pp. 205-215 . (doi:10.1007/978-3-030-24741-6_18).

Abstract

The field of bio-hybrid robotics aims at the integration of biological components with artificial materials in order to take advantage of many unique features occurring in nature, such as adaptability, self-healing or resilience. In particular, skeletal muscle tissue has been used to fabricate bio-actuators or bio-robots that can perform simple actions. In this paper, we present 3D bioprinting as a versatile technique to develop these kinds of actuators and we focus on the importance of optimizing the designs and properly characterizing their performance. For that, we introduce a method to calculate the force generated by the bio-actuators based on the deflection of two posts included in the bio-actuator design by means of image processing algorithms. Finally, we present some results related to the adaptation, controllability and force modulation of our bio-actuators, paving the way towards a design- and optimization-driven development of more complex 3D-bioprinted bio-actuators. © 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

This record has no associated files available for download.

Contributors

Author: Rafael Mestre

Download statistics