Robot face with lab-grown living skin created by scientists hoping to make more human-like cyborgs
NY Post
It’s the face of the future.
A team of scientists unveiled a robot face covered with a delicate layer of living skin that heals itself and crinkles into a smile in hopes of developing more human-like cyborgs.
The skin was made in a lab at the University of Tokyo from a mixture of human skin cells grown on a collagen model and placed on top of a 3D-printed resin base, the New Scientist reported.
Scientists on the project — who published their findings in Cell Reports Physical Science on Tuesday — believe the living skin could be a key step in creating robots that heal and feel like humans.
“This living skin would be particularly useful for robots that interact closely with humans, such as health care, service, companion and humanoid robots, where human-like functions are needed,” Professor Shoji Takeuchi told the Times of London.
The lab-grown skin has been attached to a simple, tiny robot face that is capable of smiling — and the tissue can heal itself.