Releasing of adhered micro-objects using local stream generated by high speed motion of end effector

Abstract

This paper presents a contactless release method of microobject using local stream generaged by high speed motions of an end effector. In the micro manipulation, the release task is a challenge work due to adhesion forces. To overcome the adhesion force and to place microobject on the desired location, in this paper, we apply local stream using high speed motion controlled by a parallel link. Two fingered microhand driven by DC motors and PZT actuators is utilized for this paper. Parallel mecahnism with three PZT actuators was used for making 3D motion at high speed. To generatge high acceleration of end effector, many researchers applied simple vibration by using an additional PZT actuator. In our research, 3D high speed motion with large amplitude was achieved by only using a compacted parallel mechanism. Using local stream generated by the high speed motion of the right effector, 55µm microbeads attached to the left end effector are released. To verify the placing accuracy by the proposed method, we compare four motions, 1D motions (X and Z direction) and circular motions (clockwise and counterclockwise direction), by analyzing the trajectory of the microbeads after release. From these results of experiment, we conclude that the circular motion can detach microobjects on desired position after release.