Recent Progress in Medical Miniature Robots

Li Zhang is a professor at the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering and a professor by courtesy at the Department of Surgery at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). He is a director at the SIAT—CUHK Joint Laboratory of Robotics and Intelligent Systems, and a group leader in the Multi-scale Medical Robotics Center (MRC), InnoHK, at the Hong Kong Science Park. Dr. Zhang’s research interests include small-scale robotics and biomedical applications. He is elected as FIEEE, FRSC, FAAIA, FHKIE, a member of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences, and an Outstanding Fellow of the Faculty of Engineering at CUHK.Philip Wai Yan Chiu is currently the Dean ofthe Faculty of Medicine, Shun Hing Educationand Charity Fund Professor of Robotic Surgeryat CUHK, and the Director of MRCand Chow Yuk Ho Technology Centre forInnovative Medicine of CUHK. He is alsothe Director of Endoscopy at Prince of WalesHospital and the New Territories East Clusterof the Hong Kong Hospital Authority. Hisresearch interests include minimally invasiverobotic esophagectomy, novel endoscopictechnologies for the diagnosis of early GI cancers,endoscopic surgery, and robotics forendoluminal surgery. Kai Fung Chan is a research assistant professorat the Chow Yuk Ho Technology Centrefor Innovative Medicine and MRC of CUHK.His research interests include medical miniaturedevices, micro-/nanorobotics, and translationalmedicine. He is also a co-founderof three start-up companies that are relatedto in vitro diagnostic devices, miniature medicaldevices, and medical microrobotictechnologies.

• 1. Flow-assisted and flow-driven endovascular medical instruments2. Magnetically controlled continuum miniature robot3. Magnetic guidewire/catheter for endovascular treatment4. A new drive system for microagent controls in targeted therapy based on rotating gradient magnetic fields5. Innovation in microrobotics for the treatment of Asherman’s syndrome: A perspective study6. Design and fabrication of a magnetic actuation miniature soft robot for biological sampling7. Functionalization of microrobots for biomedical applications8. Clinical imaging of miniature robots in relevant biological scenarios9. Magnetic microrobots from individual to collective steering10. Sperm-micromotors for assisted reproduction and drug delivery11. Untethered microrobots for minimally invasive removal of blood clots12. Micro-/nanorobots for combating biofilm infections13. Magnetic actuation of flexible and soft robotic systems for medical applications14. In vitro diagnostics via micro/nanorobotic platform