Delivering medicine to ulcers or other internal sites often requires invasive procedures that can disrupt surrounding tissues and lengthen recovery times. Traditional magnetic actuators used in soft robotics are bulky and limit motion efficiency, making minimally invasive systems difficult to design. Now, researchers created a thin, flexible film that acts like “magnetic muscles,” enabling origami-inspired robots to move and perform tasks inside the body safely and effectively.

Researchers at North Carolina State University (NC State, Raleigh, NC, USA) developed a 3D-printing technique that produces paper-thin soft magnets capable of powering origami-based robots. By infusing rubber-like elastomers with ferromagnetic particles, they created a flexible magnetic film that serves as an actuator without adding bulk. The dual-curing process uses ultraviolet light and thermal heating to solidify the material, allowing for a high concentration of ferromagnetic particles and enhanced magnetic strength.

The researchers designed an origami robot using the Miura-Ori folding pattern, which can compact into a small capsule and later expand. When exposed to a magnetic field, the attached magnetic films trigger controlled motion, helping the robot open and navigate to targeted areas for drug delivery. This setup supports wireless operation and smooth folding without affecting structural integrity, marking a step forward for soft robotic applications in medicine.

In experiments using a mock stomach made from a plastic sphere filled with warm water, the robot was guided magnetically to a simulated ulcer site. Once positioned, it unfolded and remained fixed in place while releasing medication in a controlled, continuous manner. The results, published in Advanced Functional Materials, show that the design enables precise navigation and effective, non-invasive drug delivery.

A second robot built with a modified Miura-Ori design demonstrated crawling motion by contracting and expanding under a magnetic field. This robot was able to climb obstacles up to 7 millimeters high, move across sand, and adjust its speed by varying the magnetic field’s strength and frequency. The success of both robots highlights the versatility and strength of this magnetoactive origami system.

The combination of soft magnetic actuators and origami engineering provides a scalable platform for untethered robotic systems that can operate in delicate environments. These lightweight, programmable structures hold promise for a range of biomedical uses—from targeted drug delivery to minimally invasive diagnostics—while also offering potential for use in industrial and space applications. Future work will focus on refining control precision and expanding the diversity of origami structures to meet various medical and engineering needs.

“There are many diverse types of origami structures that these muscles can work with, and they can help solve problems in fields anywhere from biomedicine to space exploration,” said Xiaomeng Fang, lead author of the study. “It will be exciting to continue to explore more applications for this technology.”

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