A team from Stanford has just developed a tiny robot capable of pulling more than 2000x its own weight.
Using directional adhesives similar to those on geckos, these robots are able to winch in multiple times their body weight, exceeding the power on the winch before they suffer from the adhesive slipping. The microtug can pull the equivalent of a human pulling a blue whale.
The second version of the microtug can pull 100x its body weight up a vertical wall, the equivalent of a human climbing a skyscraper while holding an elephant. Researchers expect to expand these robots and be able to place more sensors and other additional hardware.
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