Bradley Nelson

Bradley James Nelson (born 16 May 1962) is an American roboticist and entrepreneur. He has been the Professor of Robotics and Intelligent Systems at ETH Zurich since 2002 and is known for his research in microrobotics, nanorobotics, and medical robotics.

In 2005, Nelson was chosen as one of Scientific Americans top 50 leaders in science and technology for his work on practical applications of nanotubes. Femtotools AG, OphthoRobotics AG, Magnes AG, Oxyle AG, and MagnebotiX AG.

Education

Ph.D. in robotics (Robotics Institute, School of Computer Science), Carnegie Mellon University, 1995 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 1984,

Research

Nelson has over thirty years of experience in the field of robotics. He specializes in nanotechnology and the development of microscopic robots for use in medicine and other applications.

In early research at ETH Zurich, researchers from the Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems (IRIS), led by Nelson, developed a robot to play nanosoccer on a field of play the size of a grain of rice. The international RoboCup Nanogram demonstration events were supported by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2007, 2008, and 2009. The goal was to develop microrobots that could perform soccer related tasks, as a demonstration of the feasibility of fabricating Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) on semiconductor chips. Zurich's resonant magnetic robot, or "Magmite", was long and could be driven forward, put into reverse, and turn left and right. Magnetic fields were used to move the robot on a flat surface. ETH Zurich placed first in the 2007 RoboCup Nanogram Competition and was one of two teams to perform successfully in the 2009 competition.

In 2009, Nelson and his research team were recognized by Guinness World Records for creating the "most advanced mini robot for medical use", a robot about long with swirling flagella, constructed of semiconductor materials and controlled by a magnetic field. Like a number of Nelson's robots, the rod-shaped microrobot was inspired by a biological form, in this case Escherichia coli bacteria.

Such robots have been tested within the vitreous humor of the eye to deliver drugs to the retina. Other possible areas that have been suggested for medical applications include the heart, urinary tract, small intestine and the brain, which are difficult to reach. Water treatment and environmental cleanup are also possible application areas where nanobots could be used.

The use of specialized 3-D printers makes it possible to develop new types of materials for use in microrobots such as polymers. As of 2015, Nelson and Christofer Hierold collaborated to develop a robot made from a biocompatible biopolymer that can dissolve in the body once the robot's task is completed.

In collaboration with a team led by Selman Sakar of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), Nelson's team has developed soft-architecture microswimmer robots whose design incorporates folding techniques similar to Japanese origami. The design mimics the ability of micro-organisms to change shape in response to changing environmental conditions. The robot is made up of a multilayered structure of various hydrogels, which respond differentially to environmental conditions such as pH, temperature, or light. In response to such changes, the biopolymers expand or contract, causing the robot to change shape. The design was inspired by Trypanosoma brucei bacterium, the cause of sleeping sickness. The bacterium has a long narrow shape for moving through bodily fluids and a stubby, compact shape which it reaches its target area.

Nelson's microrobotic systems have also been used by Hannes Vogler, Ueli Grossniklaus and other researchers in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at Zurich to study the trapping mechanism of Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula). Researchers discovered a previously unknown mechanism by which the plant traps prey, with a single slow touch triggering the fly trap to close. They were able to mathematically model the angular deflection and velocity thresholds involved in the snapping mechanism.

Honors and awards Nelson has received a number of awards for his work in robotics, nanotechnology and biomedicine.

2026 American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering 2020 Grand Hamdan International Award - AI in Healthcare 2020 Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences 2019 IEEE RAS Pioneer Award, IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, "In recognition of outstanding contributions in micro and nano robotics" 2016 European Research Council Advanced Grant (Soft Micro Robotics, or SOMBOT) 2014 First Place: Mobile MicroRobot Challenge, ICRA 2012 Guinness Book of World Records for "Most Advanced Mini Robot for Medical Use." 2011 IEEE Fellow, IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine 2010 ASME Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2009 ETH Zurich Team, First Place: RoboCup Nanogram Soccer 2007 ETH Zurich Team, First Place: RoboCup Nanogram Soccer 1999 McKnight Land-Grant Professorship in Mechanical engineering, University of Minnesota