ABSTRACT
In this scene, we see red cells drifting around Proteus. Knowing that a red cell has an approximate length between 4 and 6 micrometers, then from what we see in this scene, we can estimate that the submarine has a length of approximately 30 micrometers and a width of approximately 20 micrometers. Those are rough estimates but still give an idea of the overall dimensions of the submarine. These dimensions are within the range of various submarine sizes developed by our team. But the problem with smaller submarines is that they can only carry a few crew members, which is fine with the five crew members in the movie but problematic in our case. As mentioned in Chapter 5, larger submarines (150-200 micrometers) capable of navigating in the arteries while carrying more crew members are preferable in our
82 t r av e l i n g i n t h e a r t e ry
particular applications. Figure 7.1 depicts a 10 micrometer submarine carrying only one of our microscopic crew members, just to show you that building submarines even smaller than Proteus in its final miniaturization state is possible.
