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The Diagnostic 'Bugbot'
Roland Piquepaille writes "The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that a robot combined with a swallowable camera could give doctors a better look inside the small intestine. This medical robot, dubbed 'bugbot,' is being developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in its NanoRobotics Laboratory. It will measure less than 800 nanometers in diameter and will transmit thousands of images during its trip inside yourself with its embedded camera. With the six legs attached to the microrobot, CMU researchers want to give more control to camera operators, such as coming back to a suspected lesion. This robot should be ready for human inspection within 2 to 3 years and opens the way for future nanorobots. This overview contains more details about this project."
at the end of the food chute are going to look rough in the editing room.
I'd heard that someone had developed a device like this a few years back, but the thing that I wondered about was control. I guess the early models were the ones that I had heard about, because they didn't have any external operational control.
I hope the bug pulls its legs out before the big exit.
"Rocky Rococo, at your cervix!"
Well, having just experienced my very first colonoscopy I must say this development leaves me with mixed feelings.
One one hand this "bug" is way smaller than what explored my nether regions.
On the other hand the drugs that they gave me at the clinic while doing the procedure were very good!
Three Squirrels
800 nanometers seems way too small. That's on the order of one wavelength of visible light. I think someone got the units wrong.
And the knowledge that they fear is a weapon to be used against them...
... you've been bugbotted...
800nm diameter? That doesn't make any sense! 800nm is close to visible light wavelengths. Could be tricky to design a camera when the wavelengths you want to record are the same size as the camera.
Hmm, and a quick scan the linked articles don't really mention 800nm.... Was someone just pulling that number out of their ass, roland?
And please stop linking to your summaries of the artice, which simply cut'n'paste the first linked article with a few bits of filler.
You are in a twisty maze of processor lines, all alike.
There is a lot of hype here.
This robot should be ready for human consumption within 2 to 3 years and opens the way for future nanorobots.
At least.. I hope that's how it goes in..
I remember when legal used to mean lawful, now it means some kind of loophole. - Leo Kessler
I've had a colonoscopy (I had colon cancer when I was 34; it's cool, I'm all better now) and they make well sure that you are all 'cleaned out' prior to the procedure. I'm sure it's the same with this.
First, you take a powerful laxative. This tastes like toxic 7-up. Make sure your bathroom is well-stocked.
Then the next day you drink a GALLON of electrolytic fluid (like soapy gatorade) over the course of a couple of hours. You will have nuclear diarrhea for a while. This is way worse (the diarrhea) than you get from the chemotherapy (depending on what drugs you get; I got leukovorin and 5FU).
Even with all of this, swallowing the camera would be way better than the old way. Let me just say that the cable on the camera they use on the other end is over 7 feet long. I'm not even 6 feet tall. *shudders*
This eye-robot, on its less-than-fantastic voyage, should soon thereafter be able to retrieve tiny tissue samples, too. Locomotion can't be much easier than prospecting...
Seeing bad movies only encourages them. Watch responsibly
I'm confused.
How can something the with of two fingers be considered "nano-technology" ???
-- Duder
Swallowable cameras already exist; the 800nm diameter robot is still on the drawing board; it would have to be that small to be injected, not swallowed, and might be used for drug deliver or other tasks.
Frankly, given the build-up I'd heard, I was disappointed at how unpleasant the whole procedure was not . Yeah, going a day without solid food beforehand was a nuisance, and the induced diarrhea (and the accompanying lack of sleep, since my procedure was first thing in the morning, and the last dose of laxative has to be taken 5 hours prior) wasn't exactly fun. But by far the most unpleasant part of the whole experience was the mundane discomfort of repeated wiping. (Tip: instead of TP, use your bathtub as a bidet and a plush towel to dry off.)
The procedure itself? The drugs they give you send you so far into la-la land that it won't bother you, and the guys who find the very notion of someone exploring their rectum discomforting on a homophobic psychological level will be relieved that they won't even remember the experience. It's a bit like a drugged date rape with signed consent forms. :) Seriously, there was absolutely no residual pain, and a few days later it's as if it never happened... except for the fact that I now know that my colon is healthy, rather than hoping and wondering.
The bottom line (no pun intended): If there's any history of colon cancer in your family and you're over 40, or your doctor recommends it for any other reason, don't wait for nanobots or whatever to get your colon checked out. Better to have a camera shoved up your ass now than to have your colon turned into a semi-colon and get put on chemo a few years from now.
http://alternatives.rzero.com/
when the developers claim that the QA department is refusing to sign off on the build because they have a bug up their ass we can take their comment literally?