Manipulation tasks with actuator arrays fabricated in MEMS (micro electro mechanical system) technology can be modeled by the theory of programmable force elds, which describes the forces generated by the actuators as planar vector elds. Given a task (e.g., unique positioning of a part) and a part geometry, we develop algorithms that automatically generate the corresponding manipulation plans a...

In this paper, a novel photovoltaic-electrostatic hybrid actuator with slant lower electrode based on the PLZT ceramic is proposed. The mathematical model of established. Then, and parameters identified, simulation closed-loop displacement control for carried out. results show that can be controlled successfully at particular value within pull-in by light source. Furthermore, response speed out...

Many types of electrostatic and electromagnetic microactuators have been developed. It is important to understand the fundamental performance limitations of these actuators for use in micro-robotic systems. The most important consideration for micro mobile robots is the effective power density of the actuator. As inertia and gravitional forces become less significant for small robots, typical m...

This paper describes MEMS deformable polymer mirror system for adaptive optics application. This system employs a 4 μm thick SU-8 membrane with a stress balanced double side aluminum coating as a mirror element. Underlying Lorentz actuators are used to control the surface topography of the mirror, enabling optical wavefront correction. Compared to electrostatic, piezoelectric, and thermal actua...

⎯ A technique for dynamic positioning of the movable electrode in an electrostatic actuator enables stable operation beyond the pull-in displacement and is used to perform squeeze-film damping measurements for different film thicknesses. Measurements at Knudsen numbers ranging between 0.03 and 0.18 are performed. Compact parallel-plate squeeze-film models are verified using the experimental res...

This paper reports the first design and its simulation and experimental results of a CMOS z-axis microactuator that utilizes the vertical electrostatic forces existing between multi-conductor comb fingers. The measured maximum displacement of the z-axis microactuator is 3.5 μm, and resonant frequency 6.17 kHz, which are in good agreement with the field simulation and the behavioral simulation r...

Compact electrostatic micromirror structures for use in the scanning arm of an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system are described. These devices consist of millimeter-scale mirrors resting upon micrometer-scale polyimide hinges that are tilted by a linear micromachine actuator, the integrated force array (IFA). The IFA is a network of deformable capacitor cells that electrostatically contr...

This paper presents an experimentally validated electromechanical model of cylindrical actuators made of dielectric elastomers with compliant electrodes. Modelling was based on independent electrical and mechanical analyses of the specific configuration of the device. The expressions of the electrostatic pressures exerted by the electrodes in response to an applied voltage were formulated and i...

In this paper, we present a controller design for servoing the position of a parallel-plate electrostatic microactuator beyond its open-loop instability point. Controller design considers nonlinearities from both the parallel-plate actuator and the parallel-plate position sensor, to ensure robust stability within the feedback loop. Desired transient response is achieved by a pre-filter added in...

Arrays of electrostatic MEMS actuators have been fabricated using a modi ed, multi-layer SCREAM (SingleCrystal Reactive Etching and Metallization) process. The devices consist of released, torsionally suspended grids with high aspect ratio single-crystal silicon (SCS) tips. They can be used to generate a force eld for the manipulation of small, at objects. Calculations and experiments show that...