A team of Boston University engineers and physicians has created a robotic catheter capable of shape shifting.

Designed to help with cardiac procedures using animal tissue, the robotic catheter, which received funding from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences and the U.S. Department of Energy, is expected to improve the safety and efficiency of future heart surgeries.

Source: Rogatinsky et al.

According to its developers, the catheter is equipped with a flexible, air pressure-operated tip thin enough to negotiate through veins, but also capable of inflating once inside the heart. Meanwhile an expandable ring stabilizes and subsequently anchors the catheter by pushing against the walls of the vein.

The robotic catheter is detailed in the article, A multifunctional soft robot for cardiac interventions, which appears in the journal Science Advances.

For more information on the robotic catheter, watch the accompanying video that appears courtesy of NIBIB.