A hydrogel-based intravascular microgripper manipulated using magnetic fields

This work presents a magnetic hydrogel-based microgripper which can be wirelessly manipulated by using magnetic fields. The proposed device made of biocompatible hydrogel material can be employed for the intravascular applications. The actuation mechanism for gripping motions was realized by controlling the exposure doses on the hydrogel composite in lithography process. We also successfully demonstrated the device manipulations in a PVC tube and a PDMS microfluidic channel, such as gripping motion, translational motion, and rotational motion.