FALMER, ENGLAND (REUTERS) - Using electrical charges controlled by computer, researchers are moving liquid metal to form letters.

The University of Sussex team says the research is unique.

"I believe this is the first approach using the computational programming based approach to apply to liquid metal to figure out how liquid metal is reacting to the electric field or the voltage distribution," said researcher Yutaka Tokuda. "Most of the physicists or chemists study only the principle of the physics."

A computer creates electric fields used to shape the liquid, so its position and shape can be programmed and controlled remotely.

Researchers can form letters, numbers and basic shapes.

They say liquid metals are a promising class of materials for deformable applications.

Use in soft robotics is of particular interest.

"By using this liquid circuit you can make completely flexible, much more flexible, robot design," explained Tokuda.

The team plans to increase its vector array size from a seven by seven square grid to one that is 60 by 60.