Get documents about "nanorobotics (PDF)
Shared by: playboy14
-
Stats
- views:
- 231
- posted:
- 5/29/2012
- language:
- English
- pages:
- 10
Document Sample
`
Nanorobotics
A revolutionary new technology
1
Abstract
Nanorobotics has sparked the fire for a a talk entitled "There’s Plenty of Room
revolutionary new technology. While at the Bottom". Feynman proposed using
much speculation has been published on machine tools to make smaller machine
possible far-future applications of tools, which, in turn, would be used to
nanorobotics using advanced materials make still smaller machine tools, and so
and manufacturing techniques, relatively on all the way down to the molecular
little has been published on applying level. Feynman argued that these tools
existing engineering technology to the could be applied to produce vast
problems in order to create a solution. In quantities of ultra small computers and
this paper, we will describe a mobile various microscale and nanoscale robots.
nanorobot that can be created with He concluded that this is “a development
existing technology, which can travel which I think cannot be avoided.” The
around the human body to treat and cure vision of nanorobotics was thus born.
diseases as grave as HIV. We will
address and propose solutions to
problems such as size, method of entry
into the body, means of propulsion,
means of maintaining a fixed position
while operating, control of the device,
power source, means of locating
substances to be eliminated, means of
elimination and how to remove the
device from the body afterwards. We
also put forth numerous applications of
nanorobots inside our body.
Figure1. Nanorobots operating on RBC
1. Introduction The field of nanorobotics studies the
design, manufacturing, programming,
Can you imagine using a bunch of
and control of nanoscale robots. It is the
robots as a mouthwash , using them
technology of creating machines or
to cure Alzheimer's or even better
robots at or close to the scale of
imagine never having to grow old !!!
nanometer (10-9 meters). Nanorobots are
Want to know how? Read on. typically devices ranging in size from
0.1-10 micrometers and constructed of
In 1959, the late Nobel Prize–winning molecular components which have near
physicist Richard P. Feynman presented
2
100% efficiency. At present nanorobots and even potentially counteract the
are designed in virtual 3D graphical ageing process.
environment in which nanorobots can be We may see the first nanomedical
placed and can interact with other materials and devices in use within the
nanorobots or their environment. The next few years. Relatively simple
envisioned nanorobotic applications nanodevices could soon offer cures for
range from medical to environmental major conditions such as diabetes,
sensing to space and military Alzheimer's or even Parkinson's disease.
applications. Some researchers believe 2.1. How do we introduce the device
this would cause a paradigm shift from into the body?
treatment to prevention in the medical
community. We need to find a way of introducing
the nanomachine into the body, and
allowing it access to the operations site
without causing too much ancillary
damage. We gain access via the
circulatory system, which leaves us with
a number of considerations.
The first is that the size of the
nanomachine determines the minimum
size of the blood vessel that it can
traverse. Therefore the smaller the
nanomachine the better. However, this
must be balanced against the fact that the
larger the nanomachine the more
versatile and effective it can be. This is
especially important in light of the fact
Figure 2. Nanorobot description that external control problems become
much more difficult if we are trying to
use multiple machines, even if they don't
get in each other's way.
The second consideration is an even
2. Nanorobots inside our body? simpler one; we have to get it into the
Machines the size of bacteria body without being too destructive in the
(nanomachines) may be used to cure the first place. This requires that we gain
human body of its various ills. This access to a large diameter artery that can
application of nanotechnology to the be traversed easily to gain access to most
field of medicine is commonly called as areas of the body in minimal time.
nanomedicine. 2.2 How do we move the device
In just a few decades physicians around the body?
could be sending tiny machines into our
bodies to diagnose and cure disease. One of the first problems to solve is
These nanodevices will be able to repair how to get our device to the problem
tissues, clean blood vessels and airways, area . We start with a basic assumption:
transform our physiological capabilities, we will use the circulatory system to
allow our device to move about. We
3
must then consider two possibilities: The
first possibility is to allow the device to
be carried to the site of operations by
means of normal blood flow. There are a
number of requirements for this method
to be practical. We must be able to
navigate the bloodstream; to be able to
guide the device so as to make use of the
blood flow. This also requires that there
be an uninterrupted blood flow to the
site of operations. Another problem with
this method is that it would be difficult
to remain at the site without some means Figure 3. Locomotion subsystem
of maintaining position, either by means
of an anchoring technique, or by actively 2.3 How do we know where the device
moving against the current. While the goes?
above objections do not eliminate any
possibility of using this technique, they The next problem to consider is
do point out the need for at least a exactly how to detect the problem tissue
supplementary means of locomotion. that must be treated. The following
The second is active propulsion of our methods can be employed:
device for which we can use :
2.3.1. Long-range sensors can be used
Propeller to allow us to navigate to the site of the
unwanted tissue. We must be able to
Cilia or flagellae locate a tumor, blood clot or deposit of
arterial plaque closely enough so that the
Electromagnetic pump use of short-range sensors is practical.
These would be used during actual
Jet Pump operations, to allow the device to
distinguish between healthy and the
Membrane propulsion unwanted tissue. Another important use
for sensors is to be able to locate the
Crawl along the walls of the position of the nanorobot in the body.
circulating system
Figure 4. Sensor subsystems
4
2.3.2 Ultrasonic sensors can be used in obtain position information. This is only
two modes: In the active mode, an practical for infrared or higher
ultrasonic signal is beamed into the frequencies could be useful to obtain
body, and either reflected back, received sufficiently accurate positional
on the other side of the body, or a information.
combination of both. The received signal
is processed to obtain information about 2.4 How do we control the device?
the material through which it has passed.
Consider the case of internal sensors
In the passive mode, an ultrasonic
for control. These sensors will be of two
signal of a very specific pattern is
types. The first type will be used to do
generated by the nanorobot. By means of
the final navigation. The second type of
signal processing techniques, this signal
sensor will be used during the actual
can be tracked with great accuracy
operation, to guide the nanorobot to the
through the body, giving the precise
tissue that should be removed and away
location of the nanorobot at any time.
from tissue that should not be removed.
2.3.3 Radioactive dye technique: This 2.4.1. Chemical control:
technique is basically one of
Chemical sensors can be used to
illumination. A radioactive fluid is
detect and trace chemicals in the
introduced into the circulatory system
bloodstream and use the relative
and its progress throughout the body is
concentrations of those chemicals to
tracked by means of a fluoroscope or
determine the path to take to reach the
some other radiation-sensitive imaging
unwanted tissue. Consequently, we
system. The major advantage of this
would probably need a series of
technique is that it follows the exact
nanorobots, one for each chemical, or at
same path that our nanorobot would take
least a set of replaceable sensor modules.
to reach the operations site.
The active form of this technique 2.4.2 Spectroscopic control:
would be to have a small amount of This would involve taking continuous
radioactive substance as part of the small samples of the surrounding tissue
nanorobot. This would allow its position and analyzing them for the appropriate
to be tracked throughout the body at all chemicals. This could be done either
times. Additionally, the technique would with a high-powered laser diode or by
not require the nanorobot to use any means of an electrical arc to vaporize
power, which would greatly simplify the small amounts of tissue.
design of the nanorobot. We can fully
shield the radioactive substance and 2.4.3. TV camera control:
merely track its heat directly. This method involves us having a TV
2.3.4. Radio/Microwave/Heat: A signal camera in the device and transmitting its
is generated from outside the body and is picture outside the body to a remote
allowed to reflect from or pass through control station, allowing the people
tissues and the result interpreted. In operating the device to steer it. One
order to use the technique to track the disadvantage of this technique is the
nanorobot, a signal would need to be relatively high complexity of the
generated by the nanorobot, detected sensors.
outside the body, and interpreted to
5
3. Means of treatment Unfortunately, the act of removing
The treatment for each of the medical cancerous cells to place them in the box
problems indicated above is the same in could be dangerous
general; we must remove the tissue or 3.2. Physical trauma:
substance in question from the body. We
can use the nanorobot to physically Another way of dealing with the
remove the unwanted tissue. We can also unwanted tissues is by destroying them
use the nanorobot to enhance other in situ. This would avoid damaging the
efforts being performed, and increase cancerous cells and releasing chemicals
their effectiveness. into the bloodstream. In order to do this
3.1. Physical removal: effectively, we need a means of
destroying the cell without rupturing the
We can simply send the device to the cell wall until after it is safe. The
site of the arteriosclerosis or blood clot, following methods could be used:
scoop away sections of it, and have the
device carry the tissue out of the body Resonant microwaves or
where it can be dissolved or destroyed. Ultrasonics
Repeated applications of this technique
could remove most or all of a tumor with chemical
minimal destruction to the surrounding
tissue and minimal spreading. In the case Heat
of tumors, the act of physically
Microwave
shredding or even just breaking loose
clumps of cells can result in the cancer Ultrasonic.
metastasizing throughout the body .One
possible solution is use of the sampling Electrical resistance heating
box to destroy whatever is placed within
it. Laser
Rather than design a nanorobot
capable of all techniques, we design a
nanorobot that can have any of several
"treatment modules" installed on it,
allowing the same basic design to be
used.
4. Power
One major requirement for our
nanorobot is, of course, power. We have
to obtain the power from a source within
the body, either by having a self-
generating power supply, or by getting
power from the bloodstream. The second
Figure 5. Cell surgery
possibility is to have power supplied
from a source external to the body.
6
5. Control system 7. Fields of application
We need to steer the nanorobot to Some interesting applications
where the sensors tell us it needs to be. using nanorobots are as follows:
As always, the two choices are internal To cure skin diseases, a cream
control and external. The following are containing nanorobots may be used.
considerations: It could remove the right amount of
dead skin, remove excess oils, add
Need to know where to go
missing oils, apply the right amounts
Need to know the route of natural moisturising compounds,
and even achieve the elusive goal of
Need to be able to correct if 'deep pore cleaning' by actually
drawn off course reaching down into pores and
cleaning them out
Need to be able to apply
treatment effectively
Need to be able to reach outlet
from body
Need to compensate for the
unexpected.
6. Means of recovery from the body
]
Given sufficiently accurate control of the
nano machine, we can just retrace our
path upstream. However, it would be a
lot easier, and recommended, to steer a
path through the body that traverses
major blood vessels and winds up at a
point where we can just filter the Figure 6. Robots cleaning the teeth
nanomachine out of the bloodstream.
This will reduce the possibilities for
difficulties, and also cause less wear and
A mouthwash full of smart
tear on the nanomachine. Another
possibility is to have the nanomachine nanomachines could identify and
anchor itself to a blood vessel that is destroy pathogenic bacteria while
easily accessible from outside, and allowing the harmless flora of the
perform a small surgical operation to mouth to flourish in a healthy
remove it. ecosystem. Further, the devices
would identify particles of food,
or tartar, and lift them from teeth
to be rinsed away. Being
suspended in liquid and able to
swim about, devices would be
able to reach surfaces beyond
7
reach of toothbrush bristles or the
fibers of floss
Devices working in the
bloodstream could nibble away
at arteriosclerotic deposits,
widening the affected blood
vessels. Cell herding devices
could restore artery walls and
artery linings to health, by
ensuring that the right cells and
supporting structures are in the
right places. This would prevent
most heart attacks.
Figure 7
Artificial "biobots" could be
designed to produce vitamins, Bacterial adhesion on its surface
hormones, enzymes or cytokines
in which the host body was Liver stones accumulate in the
deficient, or they could be bile duct. Nanorobots can be
programmed to selectively introduced into the bile duct and
absorb and break down poisons used to break up the liver stones
and toxins. An artificial as well. By continuing on up the
mechanical cell called a bile duct into the liver, they can
respirocyte, could be used to clear away accumulated deposits
keep a patient's tissues safely of unwanted minerals and other
oxygenated for up to about four substances as well. This of
hours if their heart has stopped course, is true for the kidneys as
beating. well.
Medical nanodevices could Gout occurs when the breakdown
augment the immune system by products of various fats cannot
finding and disabling unwanted be removed from the
bacteria and viruses. When an bloodstream by the kidneys.
invader is identified, it can be When a nanorobot is in the
punctured, letting its contents bloodstream, it can locate these
spill out and ending its deposits by means of a
effectiveness. If the contents combination of chemical sensors
were known to be hazardous by and external tracking, and can
themselves, then the immune break up the crystals, allowing
machine could hold on to it long the bloodstream to carry them
enough to dismantle it more away which will alleviate the
completely. symptoms for a time.
The nanorobots can be used to
clean wounds and burns. They
can be used to do a more
8
complete and less traumatic job including bacteria, viruses or
than conventional techniques. fungi.
The nanorobots can also be used More sophisticated medical
to attack other life forms in the nanorobots will be able to
body. In essence, this would be intervene at the cellular level,
creating artificial antibodies, and performing surgery within cells.
while this is the logical
extrapolation of the technology, Using cytosurgical nanorobots,
it will not happen for some time. corrected genes could be
installed in every one of the 10
Removing or breaking down tar, trillion tissue cells in our bodies.
etc in lungs can be done by We would then no longer
removing particles of tar and naturally age, and our bodies
other pollutants from the surface would again repair themselves as
of the alveoli, and placing them well as they did when we were
where the natural processes of children.
the body can dispose of them.
Alternatively, the unwanted
substances could be vaporized or
otherwise reduced to their
component elements. 8. Conclusion
Removal of blood clots. They
cause damage when they travel As can be seen from the above, most
to the bloodstream to a point or all of the engineering technologies to
where they can block the flow of create a series of practical and effective
blood to a vital area of the body. nanorobots already exist. Rather than
This can result in damage to vital keep our eyes fixed on the far future, let
organs in very short order. In us start now by creating some actual
many if not most cases, these working devices that will allow us to
blood clots are only detected cure some of the most deadly ailments
when they cause a blockage and known, as well as advance our
damage the organ in question, capabilities directly, rather than as the
often but not always the brain. side effects of other technologies. A
By using a nanorobot in the body concerted development effort could have
to break up such clots into a working model of the nanorobot ready
smaller pieces before they have a within a year or two, and this would
chance to break free and move on certainly advance the development of
their own, the chances of ensuing nanotechnology.
damage are reduced greatly.
Nanorobotic phagocytes called
microbivores could patrol the
bloodstream, seeking out and
digesting unwanted pathogens
9
9. References
1. Nanorobotics control design: A
practical approach tutorial.
Adiano Cavalcanti, Robert A Jr ,
Luiz C. Koetly.
2. REF08. Feynman, R.P. (1960)
There's plenty of room at the
bottom, Caltech's Engineering
and Science, February 1960,
pages 22-36.
3. A Practical Nanorobot for
treatment of various medical
problems-Leslie Rubin Stein.
4. Robots in the blood stream: The
promise of nanomedicine –
Robert Freilas.
5. Nanorobots: Medicine of the
future- Amit Bhargava.
6. A.J.Menezer,V.J.Kapoor,V.K.Go
el B.D.Cameron and J.Y.Lu
“Within a nanometer of your
life”,mechanical engineering
magazine, August 2001.
10
