Fig. 5: Continuums carriers: division and mergence.

a Illustration of the experimental setup. An ETAC (electromagnetically transitional and actuatable material-based continuum) was designed with a structure of N₁-P₁-N₂-P₂-N₃-P₃-F₄-P₄. An ETAC can be inserted into the main channel and be divided into three N-P and one F-P sub-continuums. The N-P continuums can independently conduct different tasks, i.e., vertical grasp, target practice, and horizontal grasp. After separately completing their tasks, the N-P continuums can be merged to the F-P continuum at the insertion end, realizing the simultaneous grabbing-out purpose. b Self-divisions and separate insertions to subchannels. (i) Path navigation guided by the N₁ tip. (ii) Self-division at the P₁-N₂ connection to release the N₁-P₁ sub-continuum. The released N₁-P₁ sub-continuum was further guided to the middle channel. (iii) Self-division at the P₂-N₃ connection to release the N₂-P₂ sub-continuum for the top subchannel navigation. (iv) The rest of the continuum was inserted into the bottom channel guided by the N₃ tip. Scale bar: 1 cm. c ETACs can vary their stiffness to further enhance their flexibility, which is useful for adapting and grasping objects with irregular shapes. Scale bar: 1 cm. d The N₂-P₂ sub-continuum can accurately aim at the target by magnetic controls. By contacting the target and transiting to the softening state, the sub-continuum can stick to the predefined target with a body-acceptable temperature (45–50 ° C for ~10 s). Scale bar: 1 cm. e To circumferentially grab the rotary body, the N₃ tip is required to bend locally at an angle of more than 200°. By applying an RF (radiofrequency) field at the N₃ region, its stiffness can be further enhanced and complete the task. The stiffness of the continuum was reduced by more than 1000%-2000% after being remotely softened. Scale bar: 1 cm. f The P₃-F₄ connection can be divided to release the F₄-P₄ sub-continuum. The F₄ tip was guided to the insertion ends of the other three sub-continuums and conducted self-mergences. Therefore, these sub-continuums were assembled back to a single ETAC. By dragging the insertion end of the merged continuum, these objects can be grabbed out simultaneously. Scale bar: 1 cm.