Researchers have developed a prototype robotic capsule designed to crawl though a patient’s stomach, enabling doctors to view and even treat an internal ailment remotely.

Current endoscopies require a patient to swallow a capsule equipped with a camera that transmits images back outside the body. The prototype capsule has legs, made of a shape memory alloy, that can move the capsule across intestinal tissues without damaging the tissue.

Unlike current capsules, the robotic capsule could be guided to particular spots in the intestinal system.