A soft robot mimicking the human eye to keep the endoscope's view clear — NSF AI grant $1.04M (University of Tennessee)
NSF awarded about $1.04 million for an AI-enabled soft robot that mimics the eye's protective functions (blinking, tear flow, corneal sensing) to autonomously keep a laparoscopic camera's view clear during minimally invasive surgery. It integrates soft actuation, programmable fluidics, and real-time AI control, with applications also in space, disaster response, and industry.
Grant overview (primary data)
- Award amount$1,038,318
- RecipientUniversity of Tennessee Knoxville (Tennessee)
- ProgramFRR-Foundationl Rsrch Robotics
- Period2025-10-01 〜 2028-09-30
- FunderU.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) / NSF
Key points
- A miniature AI soft robot mimicking the eye's protection (blinking, tears, corneal sensing)
- Addresses laparoscopic lens contamination (smoke, fluids, condensation, debris) impairing the view
- Soft actuation + programmable fluidics + real-time AI control for autonomous cleaning and vision enhancement
- Knowledge extends to robotic perception in space exploration, disaster response, and industry
- NSF Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR); ~$1.04M; University of Tennessee, Knoxville; 2025–2028
- The median period across the 120 NSF AI-related awards this site holds as of 2026-09-01 is 1,095 days — three years, longer than the 729 of federal procurement.
The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded about $1.04 million ($1,038,318) to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville's "AI Embodied Biomimetic Soft Robot for Superior Vision in Minimally Invasive Surgery" (NSF Award 2503725; program: FRR — Foundational Research in Robotics; October 2025–September 2028).
1Mimicking the eye's protective functions
Per the abstract, this foundational robotics project develops a miniature, AI-enhanced soft robotic system that mimics key protective functions of the human eye — blinking, tear flow, and corneal sensing — to autonomously maintain visual clarity during minimally invasive surgeries.
2When the laparoscope lens fouls
In these procedures, surgeons rely entirely on laparoscopic cameras for visual guidance, but lens contamination from smoke, fluids, condensation, and debris frequently impairs visibility. Such obstructions disrupt the procedure and require repeated manual or instrument-based interventions to restore clarity.
The system integrates soft actuation, programmable fluidics, and real-time AI control to enable autonomous lens cleaning, adaptive airflow shaping, and vision enhancement within a compact robotic platform.
3Beyond medicine
The abstract further notes that beyond this medical need, the knowledge gained will enable applications in robotic perception for space exploration, disaster response, and advanced industrial automation, and that the project contributes to STEM education.
4Three years is the standard shape
Across the 120 NSF AI-related awards this site holds as of 2026-09-01, the median period is 1,095 days — exactly three years. The shortest is 364 days, about one year, and the longest 2,191, about six.
Research awards take three years as their basic shape. It is also the length over which a doctoral student reaches a stopping point, and it allows for the time results take. Set against federal procurement contracts, whose median is 729 days, research assumes a longer horizon.
Why it matters
Foundational research supporting the "seeing" side of surgical robotics, with an original mix of biomimetics, soft robotics, and AI. Keeping vision clear in dirty environments is shared by space, disaster, and industrial robots, so the medical work is broadly extensible — a practical bridge between robotics and AI.
FAQ
What is "biomimetic"?
What is a soft robot?
Sources (primary)
Source: NSF Award Search (U.S. National Science Foundation, public domain). Amounts are the obligated amount. For privacy, we do not handle principal investigator names.
- NSF Award (original, official)
- NSF Award ID: 2503725