Workshop on "Robotic assembly of 3D MEMS".

Proceedings of a workshop proposed in IEEE IROS'2007.The increase of MEMS' functionalities often requires the integration of various technologies used for mechanical, optical and electronic subsystems in order to achieve a unique system. These different technologies have usually process incompatibilities and the whole microsystem can not be obtained monolithically and then requires microassembly steps. Microassembly of MEMS based on micrometric components is one of the most promising approaches to achieve high-performance MEMS. Moreover, microassembly also permits to develop suitable MEMS packaging as well as 3D components although microfabrication technologies are usually able to create 2D and "2.5D" components. The study of microassembly methods is consequently a high stake for MEMS technologies growth. Two approaches are currently developped for microassembly: self-assembly and robotic microassembly. In the first one, the assembly is highly parallel but the efficiency and the flexibility still stay low. The robotic approach has the potential to reach precise and reliable assembly with high flexibility. The proposed workshop focuses on this second approach and will take a bearing of the corresponding microrobotic issues. Beyond the microfabrication technologies, performing MEMS microassembly requires, micromanipulation strategies, microworld dynamics and attachment technologies. The design and the fabrication of the microrobot end-effectors as well as the assembled micro-parts require the use of microfabrication technologies. Moreover new micromanipulation strategies are necessary to handle and position micro-parts with sufficiently high accuracy during assembly. The dynamic behaviour of micrometric objects has also to be studied and controlled. Finally, after positioning the micro-part, attachment technologies are necessary

Recent advances in the study of Micro/Nano Robotics in France.

International audienceIn France, during the last decade, significant research activities have been performed in the field of micro and nano robotics. Generally speaking the microrobotic field deals with the design, the fabrication and the control of microrobots and microrobotic cells. These microrobots are intended to perform various tasks in the so-called Microworld. The scale effects from macroworld to microworld deeply affect robots in the sense that new hard constraints appear as well as new manufacturing facilities. Concerning the nanorobotics, in order to achieve high-efficiency and three-dimensional nanomanipulation and nanoassembly, parallel imaging/manipulation force microscopy and three-dimensional manipulation force microscope, as well as nanmanipulation in the scanning electron microscope, have been developed. Manipulation of nanocomponents, such as nanoparticles, nanowires and nanotubes, have been addressed to build two-dimensional nano patterns and three-dimensional nano structure

Manipulation of micro-components using vacuum grippers.

SUMMARY. During the past decades several microproducts have been fabricated for a great variety of applications in the traditional fields, including the medical and biomedical sectors, automotive, aeronautics and aerospace, Information Technology and telecommunication as well as in more innovative areas, such as household appliances, entertainment and sport equipment. Nevertheless, hybrid three dimensional micro products have still great difficulty in penetrating the market, mainly due to the limits of the fabrication processes that require manipulation and final assembly of microcomponents. These processes, being not yet automated, strongly affect the cost of products. Therefore, new market perspectives can be reached automating the assembly phase. The main challenge is due to the new physical scenario that appears when dealing with the assembly of millimetric and sub-millimetric parts. Indeed, at the microscale the high surface to volume ratio leads to the predominance of the superficial forces (e.g. electrostatic, van der Waals and surface tension forces) over the gravitational force; this results in an unpredictable behaviour of the traditional manipulating mechanisms, whereas an efficient and precise control of the grasp and release of thousands of microscopic and fragile parts is required. For this reason the downscaling of traditional handling strategies and the development of new handling techniques require further studies. Several solutions can be found in literature, with their advantages and limitations, i.e.: friction and jaw microgrippers, magnetic and electrical fields used to levitate objects, adhesive grippers exploiting capillary force. Also vacuum grippers can be miniaturized. Due to their intrinsic simplicity, vacuum grippers are very cheap and appear a promising solution for industrial applications, if some improvements are carried out. In this context, an experimental setup for the automatic manipulation of microcomponents through some vacuum grippers was developed. Moreover, an innovative design of a nozzle for a vacuum gripper was fabricated and tested, comparing its performance with traditional needles. The design was conceived in order to reduce the frequency of occlusions of the nozzle and handle a wide range of particles. The tests described in this paper concern mainly the success and the precision of the release of objects from the gripper. Indeed, this is one the crucial aspect of micromanipulation because microparts tend to stick to the gripper preventing the successful performance of manipulation tasks

Workshop on "Control issues in the micro / nano - world".

International audienceDuring the last decade, the need of systems with micro/nanometers accuracy and fast dynamics has been growing rapidly. Such systems occur in applications including 1) micromanipulation of biological cells, 2) micrassembly of MEMS/MOEMS, 3) micro/nanosensors for environmental monitoring, 4) nanometer resolution imaging and metrology (AFM and SEM). The scale and requirement of such systems present a number of challenges to the control system design that will be addressed in this workshop. Working in the micro/nano-world involves displacements from nanometers to tens of microns. Because of this precision requirement, environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, vibration, could generate noise and disturbance that are in the same range as the displacements of interest. The so-called smart materials, e.g., piezoceramics, magnetostrictive, shape memory, electroactive polymer, have been used for actuation or sensing in the micro/nano-world. They allow high resolution positioning as compared to hinges based systems. However, these materials exhibit hysteresis nonlinearity, and in the case of piezoelectric materials, drifts (called creep) in response to constant inputs In the case of oscillating micro/nano-structures (cantilever, tube), these nonlinearities and vibrations strongly decrease their performances. Many MEMS and NEMS applications involve gripping, feeding, or sorting, operations, where sensor feedback is necessary for their execution. Sensors that are readily available, e.g., interferometer, triangulation laser, and machine vision, are bulky and expensive. Sensors that are compact in size and convenient for packaging, e.g., strain gage, piezoceramic charge sensor, etc., have limited performance or robustness. To account for these difficulties, new control oriented techniques are emerging, such as[d the combination of two or more ‘packageable' sensors , the use of feedforward control technique which does not require sensors, and the use of robust controllers which account the sensor characteristics. The aim of this workshop is to provide a forum for specialists to present and overview the different approaches of control system design for the micro/nano-world and to initiate collaborations and joint projects

Aerospace medicine and biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes, supplement 130, July 1974

This special bibliography lists 291 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in June 1974

Automatic Microassembly of Tissue Engineering Scaffold

Ph.DDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPH

Haptic feedback in teleoperation in Micro-and Nano-Worlds.

International audienceRobotic systems have been developed to handle very small objects, but their use remains complex and necessitates long-duration training. Simulators, such as molecular simulators, can provide access to large amounts of raw data, but only highly trained users can interpret the results of such systems. Haptic feedback in teleoperation, which provides force-feedback to an operator, appears to be a promising solution for interaction with such systems, as it allows intuitiveness and flexibility. However several issues arise while implementing teleoperation schemes at the micro-nanoscale, owing to complex force-fields that must be transmitted to users, and scaling differences between the haptic device and the manipulated objects. Major advances in such technology have been made in recent years. This chapter reviews the main systems in this area and highlights how some fundamental issues in teleoperation for micro- and nano-scale applications have been addressed. The chapter considers three types of teleoperation, including: (1) direct (manipulation of real objects); (2) virtual (use of simulators); and (3) augmented (combining real robotic systems and simulators). Remaining issues that must be addressed for further advances in teleoperation for micro-nanoworlds are also discussed, including: (1) comprehension of phenomena that dictate very small object (< 500 micrometers) behavior; and (2) design of intuitive 3-D manipulation systems. Design guidelines to realize an intuitive haptic feedback teleoperation system at the micro-nanoscale level are proposed

Research on hybrid manufacturing using industrial robot

The applications of using industrial robots in hybrid manufacturing overcome many restrictions of the conventional manufacturing methods, such as small part building size, long building period, and limited material choices. However, some problems such as the uneven distribution of motion accuracy within robot working volume, the acceleration impact of robot under heavy external loads, few methods and facilities for increasing the efficiency of hybrid manufacturing process are still challenging. This dissertation aims to improve the applications of using industrial robot in hybrid manufacturing by addressing following three categories research issues. The first research issue proposed a novel concept view on robot accuracy and stiffness problem, for making the maximum usage of current manufacturing capability of robot system. Based on analyzing the robot forward/inverse kinematic, the angle error sensitivity of different joint and the stiffness matrix properties of robot, new evaluation formulations are established to help finding the best position and orientation to perform a specific trajectory within the robot\u27s working volume. The second research issue focus on the engineering improvements of robotic hybrid manufacturing. By adopting stereo vision, laser scanning technology and curved surface compensation algorithm, it enhances the automation level and adaptiveness of hybrid manufacturing process. The third research issue extends the robotic hybrid manufacturing process to the broader application area. A mini extruder with a variable pitch and progressive diameter screw is developed for large scale robotic deposition. The proposed robotic deposition system could increase the building efficiency and quality for large-size parts. Moreover, the research results of this dissertation can benefit a wide range of industries, such as automation manufacturing, robot design and 3D printing --Abstract, page iv

Aerospace Medicine and Biology: A continuing supplement 180, May 1978

This special bibliography lists 201 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in April 1978

Nonterrestrial utilization of materials: Automated space manufacturing facility

Four areas related to the nonterrestrial use of materials are included: (1) material resources needed for feedstock in an orbital manufacturing facility, (2) required initial components of a nonterrestrial manufacturing facility, (3) growth and productive capability of such a facility, and (4) automation and robotics requirements of the facility