A new communication method for untethered intelligent microrobots

The magnetic environment provided by a clinical Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner can be exploited for implementing a method of communication with intelligent microrobots. For untethered sensory microrobots having some level of intelligence and operating inside the body, the transmission power necessary to communicate information to an external computer via known methods is insufficient. In this paper, a technique is described where such loss of transmission power due to the scaling of these microrobots can be compensated by the MRI scanner acting as a more sensitive receiver. We propose a binary communication scheme in the form of a directional alteration in the current circulating in a miniature coil that could be embedded in the microrobot. The direction of the current could be regulated from a predetermined sensory threshold input implemented on the microrobot. The direction of the current provides information about the level of sensory input from a microrobot and it is determined using MR phase encoding images. The preliminary results which are presented in this paper confirmed the possibility of using this communication method in future microrobots.