Many different fields of science can go hand in hand. Engineering combined with biology is no exception. Many scientists are looking to Earth’s wildlife to create technologies today from drones based off of pigeons to sonar inspired by bats and dolphins. The technology I’m talking about today is a type of armor inspired by the chiton mollusk. For those who don’t know (I imagine chiton mollusk isn’t a very common animal to learn about) a chiton mollusk is an oval shaped, sea creature covered in small, flexible plates.
It is these flexible plates that scientists are looking to in order to create armor for our joints, one of the hardest places to create gear for because you need something that is tough enough to protect it, but also flexible enough that you can move. The chiton’s unique system which varies from other mollusks’ single or dual shells, has been studied by mechanical engineer Ling Li. Li and his team began by studying the basics of how the chiton’s shells worked and from there created 3-D modeling to mimic how the shells behaved and are organized which plays a large role into how the armor is both tough and flexible.
It looks as though there’s a lot of work ahead, but once completed this invention could help many people. Athletes, scientists, and industrial workers all have a use for gear that could protect their joints. It’s definitely a technology we’ll be able to look forward to in the future, all because of the chiton mollusk.
References
Bushwick, Sophie. “Mollusk Armor.” Scientific American, Apr. 2020, pp. 18–18.
“Chiton.” Edited by Richard Pallady, Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 31 Aug. 2015, www.britannica.com/animal/chiton-mollusk.Haugh, Lindsey.
“Chiton Mollusk Provides Model for New Armor Design.” Phys.org, Phys.org, 10 Dec. 2019, phys.org/news/2019-12-chiton-mollusk-armor.html.