Today's robots, both large and micro, can potentially go wherever it's too hot, cold, dangerous, small or remote for people to perform any number of important tasks, from repairing leaking water mains to stitching blood vessels together. But a major obstacle to such goals has been the limited speed and control of the robots' "artificial muscles" that perform such tasks.

Currently, robotic muscles move 100 times slower than a human's muscles. But MIT engineers led by Professor Sidney Yip, a professor of nuclear engineering and materials science, have been successful in making robotic muscles 1,000 times faster than human muscles -- with virtually no extra energy demands and the added bonus of a simpler design.

A robotic muscle refers to a device that can be activated to perform a task, such as a sprinkler activated by pulling a fire alarm lever.

The study appears in the current Nov. 4 issue of the journal Physical Review Letters.