It’s ok! We will soon find out what is wrong with you. I just need to put this worm in your gut.

This conversation may take place in a physicians office in the foreseeable future. Scientists are in the process of developing a “robot worm” mounted with a video camera. This worm can be placed in the gut and then can be maneuvered by external controls to peep in to every nook and corner of the intestines looking for any pathologic process.

The robot has been modeled on polychaetes or the “paddle worm.” The potential advantage of modeling this robot after worms is that they are biologically suited to navigate “unstructured slippery environment.”

The control to move and advance the robot in any desired direction gives a huge advantage over the current methods of looking inside the intestines viz. endoscopy and the “camera pill,” which have limited maneuverability and are subject to blind spots that can lead to missed diagnoses.

Reference - NewScientistTech

Videos of robot prototypes -
1. Crawling through a section of pig gut
2. In hand
3. Wriggling on the sand
4. On a flat surface

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