Princeton, NJ - According to Jeanne DeVoe of the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab, "Lenore Rasmussen's dream of developing a synthetic muscle that could be used to make better prosthetic limbs and more responsive robots will literally become airborne this week, when her experiment will rocket off to the International Space Station from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Rasmussen, a synthetic polymer chemist and founder of Ras Labs, has worked closely with researchers and engineers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to develop the material's ability to adhere to metal. The Synthetic Muscle™ could be used in robotics in deep space travel such as travel to Mars because of its radiation resistance."
"Based on the good results we had on planet Earth, the next step is to see how it behaves in a space environment," said Charles Gentile, a PPPL engineering and scientific staff member who has worked closely with Rasmussen. "From there the next step might be to use it on a mission to Mars."
Jeanne explains, "Rasmussen began working with PPPL in 2007, four years after she started Ras Labs and nine years after receiving her first patent for a synthetic muscle. The muscle is made from a gel-like material called an electroactive polymer that can potentially mimic human movement by expanding and contracting. That ability would make it very useful in robotics and in developing better prosthetic limbs."
"We can't explore space without robots," Rasmussen said. "Humans can only withstand a certain amount of radiation so that limits the time that people can be in space, whereas robots, particularly if they're radiation-resistant, can be up there for long periods of time without being replaced."
Lew Meixler, the long-time head of Technology Transfer at PPPL who retired in March, said he has enjoyed helping Rasmussen follow her quest. "That's what entrepreneurs are," he said. "They're the dreamers who devote all their time, energy and resources to follow their dreams."
For the full story: http://www.princeton.edu/research/news/features/a/?id=14808
Jeanne explains, "Rasmussen began working with PPPL in 2007, four years after she started Ras Labs and nine years after receiving her first patent for a synthetic muscle. The muscle is made from a gel-like material called an electroactive polymer that can potentially mimic human movement by expanding and contracting. That ability would make it very useful in robotics and in developing better prosthetic limbs."
"We can't explore space without robots," Rasmussen said. "Humans can only withstand a certain amount of radiation so that limits the time that people can be in space, whereas robots, particularly if they're radiation-resistant, can be up there for long periods of time without being replaced."
Lew Meixler, the long-time head of Technology Transfer at PPPL who retired in March, said he has enjoyed helping Rasmussen follow her quest. "That's what entrepreneurs are," he said. "They're the dreamers who devote all their time, energy and resources to follow their dreams."
For the full story: http://www.princeton.edu/research/news/features/a/?id=14808
