The types and functions of tools used in minimally invasive surgical procedures are frequently limited by the need to insert such complex devices through narrow catheter openings. These constraints can be cured by magnetically driven reconfigurable soft robotic technology that can self-fold into large assemblies to form different surgical instruments with programmable shapes and functions.

The magnetic soft robotic chains (MaSoChains) system designed by researchers from the University of Konstanz (Germany) and ETH Zurich (Switzerland) incorporates 3D-printed surgical instruments composed of small rigid polymer segments linked by flexible elastic connectors and incorporating neodymium iron boron magnets. When inserted into a catheter, the components are placed end-to-end in a row and as each is pushed out of the end of the passageway, the desired tool shape is formed due to the attraction of individually embedded magnets.

Schematic illustration of a standard surgical tool and a self-folding MaSoChain. The MaSoChains can self-fold into large assemblies at the tip of the catheter with multiple functional domains. Source: Nature Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36819-z

The technology detailed in Nature Communications has been used to create a prototype grasper that can grab and move items within the body, and a three-piece steerable endoscopic camera capable of performing movements with very tight radii and angles that are not feasible with currently available endoscopes.

The MaSoChains components revert to their original configuration during the return through the catheter in a system that can be sterilized and reused.