How miniaturization is making robots smarter and more autonomous - The Robot Report

The article discusses how miniaturization in robotics—reducing the size of robots and their components while enhancing their power and precision—is enabling smarter, more autonomous machines capable of operating in confined or hard-to-reach spaces. This trend leverages advances in micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and microcontrollers to integrate sensors, actuators, and computing power into compact footprints without sacrificing reliability. Benefits of miniaturized robots include increased speed and accuracy due to lighter components, improved efficiency and cost-effectiveness from lower power consumption and material use, and enhanced accessibility to environments inaccessible to larger robots or humans, such as ducts, tanks, and confined spaces. Technological progress in MEMS allows chip-scale sensing and actuation, providing small robots with capabilities like inertial sensing and environmental monitoring. Microcontrollers serve as the compact “brains” of these robots, enabling real-time processing essential for navigation and balance. Soft robotics, which use flexible structures to handle delicate or irregular objects safely, represent another innovation