Robotic arms, nanobots and exoskeletons: between the health and craftsmanship of the future

BarcelonaAs every year, Mobile World Capital Barcelona (MWCapital) transforms its Mobile World Congress stand in Hall 6 of the Gran Via Fairgrounds into an immersive experience showcasing several disruptive projects. This year, the major hits They revolve around health and agriculture.

An olive tree planted in the middle of the stand with a hyperspectral scanning system installed forms the Bio-Circular Harvest, with the aim of showing how technology is revolutionizing the agri-food sector. The installation – promoted by Leitat together with MWCapital – allows for highly precise analysis of the different components of the olive tree, enabling visitors to perform a digital scan and visualize, in real time, key data for crop optimization: the degree of fruit ripeness, the plant's water status, and the degree of infestation.

"This information helps farmers determine the optimal harvest time and allows them to act proactively if they detect potential diseases that could affect the fruit," explains the Foundation. Beyond diagnosing the olive tree, the scan also reveals data on various alternative products that could be derived, such as cosmetics, food ingredients, biofuels, fertilizers, or value-added ingredients for other industries. According to the studies presented, this can reduce water consumption by up to 35%, while harvesting olives at their optimal stage for oil production can increase yields by up to 20%.

Rehabilitation and nanobots

Hospital del Mar is also part of this stand with a revolutionary experience: an exoskeleton by ABLE Human Motion capable of capturing precise data on a patient's rehabilitation process. This project is part of a Health initiative through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, funded by Next Generation EU funds as part of a program for rare diseases and ALS. This robotic external skeleton is worn by the patient and allows for the evaluation of each patient's improvement and the adaptation of the rehabilitation process to their actual needs, with the aim of providing more personalized therapy. Furthermore, in collaboration with Nanobots Therapeutics—a company that emerged from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and ICREA—the Capital is presenting a pioneering technology based on the creation of self-propelled nanoparticles that precisely transport medications to the areas affected by tumors and the side effects of other drugs. "They directly attack cancer cells," the foundation explains.

According to the preclinical trials presented, a single dose can reduce the size of bladder tumors, one of the most frequently diagnosed cancers, by up to 90%. The nanobots are nanoparticles coated with an enzyme, urease, which uses urea present in the body to propel itself to the tumor. They incorporate various medications for local therapy, reducing the need for systemic treatments and hospitalizations.

Artistic AI

Beyond the healthcare and agricultural sectors, artificial intelligence (AI) is also making its way into the world of crafts. To demonstrate this, MWCapital, in collaboration with the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) and the family-run company Cerámicas Cumella, presents a technological experience that allows visitors to recreate the glazing process of a ceramic piece using a robotic arm that precisely replicates their movements.

The experience demonstrates how robotic systems can analyze data in real time, learn patterns, and encode human gestures to the point of replicating them with absolute precision. It is a combination of artificial intelligence and robotics "that allows the artisan's gesture to be preserved, maintaining the uniqueness of each garment, integrating the precision derived from knowledge of the material to explore new aesthetics," explains the City Council. The exhibition also includes a ceramic piece like the 15,000 that have been placed on the Tower of Jesus at the Sagrada Família and were made using this process. "The artisan only had to glaze one, and the robotic arm, copying the pattern, made the remaining 14,999," explains the IAAC (Andalusian Institute of Contemporary Art).