Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines
Abstract Soft and flexible robotics is an emerging field that attracts a huge interest due to its ability to produce bioinspired devices that are easily adaptable to the environment. Biohybrid Machines (BHM) represent a category of soft robots that integrate biological tissues, such as engineered mu...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06465-0 |
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| author | Riccardo Collu Judith Fuentes Florencia Lezcano Maria Crespo-Cuadraro Andrea Bartolucci Leonardo Ricotti Lorenzo Vannozzi Samuel Sánchez Stefano Lai Massimo Barbaro |
| author_facet | Riccardo Collu Judith Fuentes Florencia Lezcano Maria Crespo-Cuadraro Andrea Bartolucci Leonardo Ricotti Lorenzo Vannozzi Samuel Sánchez Stefano Lai Massimo Barbaro |
| author_sort | Riccardo Collu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Soft and flexible robotics is an emerging field that attracts a huge interest due to its ability to produce bioinspired devices that are easily adaptable to the environment. Biohybrid Machines (BHM) represent a category of soft robots that integrate biological tissues, such as engineered muscle tissues, as actuating systems. Although these devices present several advantages in some applications, their proper actuation still represents a challenge for researchers. This paper focuses on the development of a portable and programmable electrical stimulator designed to control muscle fiber-based biohybrid actuators. The stimulator, made using off-the-shelf components, was designed as a stacking of three independent printed circuit boards (PCBs), connected vertically in order to result in a final device with compact dimensions of 59 mm $$\times$$ × 28 mm $$\times$$ × 25 mm. The stimulation circuit is capable of delivering currents up to 18 mA with a voltage compliance of ± 90 V, and a power consumption of approximately 1.3 W. The device’s ability to induce twitch and tetanic contractions in a biohybrid actuator is demonstrated in different stimulation conditions. A practical application was also explored through a test case involving a flexible catheter prototype controlled by a biohybrid actuator, demonstrating its potential utility in a BHMs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cebce6c8e9834d35b5b4a97fd90fe3c6 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-cebce6c8e9834d35b5b4a97fd90fe3c62025-08-20T03:45:20ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111210.1038/s41598-025-06465-0Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machinesRiccardo Collu0Judith Fuentes1Florencia Lezcano2Maria Crespo-Cuadraro3Andrea Bartolucci4Leonardo Ricotti5Lorenzo Vannozzi6Samuel Sánchez7Stefano Lai8Massimo Barbaro9Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of CagliariInstitute for Bioengineering (IBEC)Institute for Bioengineering (IBEC)Institute for Bioengineering (IBEC)The BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant’AnnaThe BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant’AnnaThe BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant’AnnaInstitute for Bioengineering (IBEC)Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of CagliariDepartment of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of CagliariAbstract Soft and flexible robotics is an emerging field that attracts a huge interest due to its ability to produce bioinspired devices that are easily adaptable to the environment. Biohybrid Machines (BHM) represent a category of soft robots that integrate biological tissues, such as engineered muscle tissues, as actuating systems. Although these devices present several advantages in some applications, their proper actuation still represents a challenge for researchers. This paper focuses on the development of a portable and programmable electrical stimulator designed to control muscle fiber-based biohybrid actuators. The stimulator, made using off-the-shelf components, was designed as a stacking of three independent printed circuit boards (PCBs), connected vertically in order to result in a final device with compact dimensions of 59 mm $$\times$$ × 28 mm $$\times$$ × 25 mm. The stimulation circuit is capable of delivering currents up to 18 mA with a voltage compliance of ± 90 V, and a power consumption of approximately 1.3 W. The device’s ability to induce twitch and tetanic contractions in a biohybrid actuator is demonstrated in different stimulation conditions. A practical application was also explored through a test case involving a flexible catheter prototype controlled by a biohybrid actuator, demonstrating its potential utility in a BHMs.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06465-0Electrical current stimulatorSoft roboticsBiohybrid machines |
| spellingShingle | Riccardo Collu Judith Fuentes Florencia Lezcano Maria Crespo-Cuadraro Andrea Bartolucci Leonardo Ricotti Lorenzo Vannozzi Samuel Sánchez Stefano Lai Massimo Barbaro Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines Scientific Reports Electrical current stimulator Soft robotics Biohybrid machines |
| title | Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| title_full | Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| title_fullStr | Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| title_full_unstemmed | Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| title_short | Development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| title_sort | development of an electrical current stimulator for controlling biohybrid machines |
| topic | Electrical current stimulator Soft robotics Biohybrid machines |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06465-0 |
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