A team at the University of Southern California has designed a miniscule robot with a unique power source. Rather than trying to attach it to a miniature battery, they went with a simpler solution. This little guy runs on a “catalytic artificial micro-suede" powered by heat. This heat comes from the combustion reaction of liquid methanol (a non-drinking type of alcohol) stored inside the body of the robot.
The RoBeetle, as it’s called, weighs just 88 milligrams, but it can carry up to two and a half times its own weight. The robot was designed to get into places humans can’t — teeny tiny ones, to be exact.
