Cephalopods
Cephalopods include octopuses, squids & cuttlefish. They are highly intelligent creatures.
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Suction cups or suckers cover their arms. They have multiple purposes, being used to capture prey, to grip onto surfaces and to pick up & explore objects. They also use them to smell & taste.
Cephalopod Suction Cups
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The suction cups are complex structures. They create a strong grip to objects
both in and out of water.
Signals from the brain power rapid contraction and relaxation of the muscles. This changes the internal pressure of the cups. This change in pressure creates a seal between the surface of the cup and the object it is attaching to.
This is a prototype being developed inspired by the cephalopod's suction cups. It is intended to be used for tissue transfers, e.g., a corneal transplant, where a delicate sheet of tissue is transferred onto the eye.
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The concept is based on the signalling that creates a change of pressure within the cup and the resultant sealant effect. The change in pressure happens internally and means that no external pressure has to be applied. The device is less likely to cause damage to transplant tissue.
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The device can attach to, lift and detach from objects within 10 seconds.
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It heats a layer of gel with micro-channels. The heat causes these channels to shrink & expand. This causes a change of pressure in the channels which results in the sealing effect.
Electrothermal Soft Manipulator
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[Kim BS, et al. Electrothermal soft manipulator enabling safe transport and handling of thin cell/tissue sheets and bioelectronic devices. Sci. Adv. 2020;6(42):eabc5630.]