biomechatronic

adjective

bio·​mech·​a·​tron·​ic ¦bī-(ˌ)ō-ˌme-kə-¦trä-nik 

of a machine

: having a combination of mechanical and biological parts : bionic sense 2a(2)

In the past, researchers have incorporated living muscle tissue into much larger machines. For instance, several years ago, a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology demonstrated a palm-size device, called the biomechatronic fish, that swam under the power of muscle tissue extracted from frogs' legs.

—Peter Weiss, Science News, 22 Jan. 2005

Word History

First Known Use

1997, in the meaning defined above

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