New Scientist magazine reports that several prototypes of the radio-controlled robots are being tested in animal models.
They have been used to help perform gall bladder and prostate removal in pig experiments.
The University of Nebraska team believe they could potentially revolutionise minimally invasive keyhole surgery.
There are several prototypes of the robots, each about 15 millimetres in diameter.
One has a camera attached, another is equipped with a needle that can extract a small piece of tissue for a biopsy.
The robot that moves around the abdominal cavity has a spiral pattern on its wheels, allowing it to transverse multiple organ surfaces and move around without slipping or damaging tissue."...
In the future, a surgeon removing a gall bladder or performing a liver biopsy may be able to introduce the robots via the patient's mouth, then pass them through a small incision in the stomach wall.
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