Artificial muscle created from fishing line is 100 times stronger than humans'

Researchers are now using fibres from fishing line and sewing thread to make inexpensive artificial muscles that can be used in medical devices, humanoid robots, prosthetic limbs.

In the study, international researchers, including University of British Columbia Electrical and Computer Engineering professor John Madden and PhD candidate Seyed Mohammad Mirvakili, detail how they created inexpensive artificial muscles that generate far more force and power than human or animal muscles of the same size.

Madden said that in terms of the strength and power of the artificial muscle, they found that it can quickly lift weights 100 times heavier than a same-sized human muscle can, in a single contraction, asserting that it also has a higher power output for its weight than that of an automobile combustion engine.

The high-strength polymer fibres made from polyethylene and nylon were twisted into tight coils - like you would twist the rubber band of a model toy airplane - to create an artificial muscle that could contract and relax.

The artificial muscles contract and relax in response to changes in temperature, which can be controlled by an electrical heating element.

The study has been published in journal Science.