Mit diesem neuen künstlichen Muskel könnten humanoide Roboter das 4.000-fache ihres eigenen Gewichts heben

„Imagine a rubber band that turns into a steel cable on command. Now imagine it’s inside a robot.

That’s the basic trick of a new artificial muscle built by researchers at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) in South Korea. In a study published in *Advanced Functional Materials*, they describe a soft, magnetically controlled muscle that can flip between floppy and rock-solid — and deliver more energy than human muscle tissue ever could.

In its stiffened state, this tiny strip of material weighs about 1.2 grams yet can hold up to 5 kilograms. That’s roughly 4,000 times its own weight. When softened, it can stretch to around 12 times its original length and contract with a strain of 86.4%, more than twice that of typical human muscle.

The muscle’s work density — how much mechanical energy it can deliver per unit volume — reaches 1,150 kilojoules per cubic meter. That’s about 30 times higher than human muscle tissue. For soft robotics, that’s like jumping from a scooter to a sports bike overnight.“

I have a muscle that can flip from floppy to rock hard too.

I just imagined this thing ripping a fully grown human in half