Article
Robotics
Franco N. Pinan Basualdo, A. Bolopion, M. Gauthier, P. Lambert
Summary: Future developments in micromanufacturing will require advances in micromanipulation tools, with the air-water interface being an important medium that provides a good balance for manipulating micro-objects. ThermoBot, a microrobotic platform driven by a thermocapillary flow, can achieve velocities up to 10 times the body length per second.
Article
Robotics
Quang Minh Ta, Chien Chern Cheah
Summary: This letter presents a robotic handling approach for micro-objects using stochastic optically-actuated end-effector, which can perform pick and place tasks in the micro-world while considering the Brownian effect. The method involves construction of an end-effector with optically-actuated micro-particles for autonomous grasping and manipulation of objects, along with the usage of a robotic stage as a mobile base. Rigorous mathematical formulation, stability analysis, and experimental validation are conducted to demonstrate the feasibility and robustness of the proposed approach.
IEEE ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION LETTERS
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Analytical
Yupan Wu, Yingqi Meng
Summary: This paper reviews emerging tools enabled by microfluidic technologies for cell manipulation, including sorting and single cell trapping, and even single cell characterization. The focus is on electric field, mechanical, and fluorescence-based methods for single cell analysis and characterization, as well as the integrated microfluidic devices. The authors further discuss future commercialization and research prospects, highlight current bottlenecks, and provide their perspective on the prospects for microfluidic cell manipulation.
TRAC-TRENDS IN ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Po-Yu Chu, Chia-Hsun Hsieh, Chih-Yu Chen, Min-Hsien Wu
Summary: Optically induced dielectrophoresis (ODEP) is effective for cell manipulation but limited by low conductivity solutions. This study found that using sucrose solution in ODEP operation can decrease cell viability significantly. However, supplementing sucrose solution with bovine serum albumin (BSA) can improve cell viability and operational efficiency.
FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Luca Rosalia, Adrien Hallou, Laurence Cochrane, Thierry Savin
Summary: The mechanical properties of soft biological tissues have important implications in physiology and disease, influencing cell behavior and contributing to tissue development, maintenance, and repair. However, existing tools have limitations that hinder a comprehensive understanding of soft tissue biomechanics. In this study, an instrument based on closed-loop interaction between an electromagnetic actuator and an optical strain sensor is developed for high-fidelity uniaxial tensile testing of soft biological tissues in controlled environmental conditions. The instrument's enhanced reliability makes it an ideal platform for future studies on soft tissue mechanics.
Article
Robotics
Yukihiro Maezawa, Yuichi Ambe, Yu Yamauchi, Masashi Konyo, Kenjiro Tadakuma, Satoshi Tadokoro
Summary: This study focuses on the disturbance rejection of a jet-actuated flying continuum robot, Dragon Firefighter, to suppress vibrations in the head nozzle unit posture against the acceleration of the mobile base. An H-infinity-based disturbance-rejection controller was designed and robot experiments confirmed its effectiveness.
IEEE ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zheng Gong, Zhenpeng Su, Xiaofeng Liu, Di Pan, Jie Liu, Huai Zheng, Sang Woo Joo
Summary: This study demonstrates a method for controlling high-speed droplet transport on lubricated surfaces, with the induced lubrication film flow by charge deposition being the dominating factor. This new method opens a new path for high-performance manipulation of liquid droplets by controlling the lubrication liquid film flow with charge deposition.
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Xin Cao, Andrea Silva, Emanuele Panizon, Andrea Vanossi, Nicola Manini, Erio Tosatti, Clemens Bechinger
Summary: Compared to translational friction, rotational friction has received less attention. In this study, we experimentally and theoretically investigate the rotational depinning and orientational dynamics of two-dimensional colloidal crystalline clusters on periodically corrugated surfaces under the influence of magnetically exerted torques. Our results show that the traversal of locally commensurate areas of the moiré pattern through the edges of clusters, hindered by potential barriers during cluster rotation, controls its rotational depinning. The experimentally measured depinning thresholds collapse onto a universal theoretical curve, suggesting the possibility of a superlow-statictorque state for large clusters. We also find a cluster-size-independent rotation-translation depinning transition when lattice-matched clusters are driven jointly by a torque and a force.
Review
Biochemical Research Methods
Gladys G. Diaz-Armas, Ana P. Cervantes-Gonzalez, Rodrigo Martinez-Duarte, Victor H. Perez-Gonzalez
Summary: This review focuses on the state-of-the-art electrical techniques and methods for manipulating and detecting exosomes in microfluidic devices. While there are numerous reviews on exosome separation using benchtop equipment like ultracentrifugation, there is a lack of reviews specifically addressing the use of electrical phenomena in microfluidic devices for exosome manipulation and detection. Highlights from the past decade and future perspectives for this research field are presented, outlining challenges to be addressed in the coming years.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Sheng-Huang Yen, Pei-Chieh Chin, Jun-Yu Hsu, Jr-Lung Lin
Summary: This study successfully developed a magnetically actuated chip for transporting droplets containing clustered magnetic beads. The chip, manufactured using PCB technology, features a two-layer 4 x 4 array micro-coils that generate a magnetic field gradient. Numerical simulations and theoretical analysis were used to optimize the chip's operation. The study aims to apply digital microfluidics in point-of-care testing and has potential benefits in genetic analysis and infectious disease detection.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Vaibhav Sharma, Florent Fessler, Fabrice Thalmann, Carlos M. Marques, Antonio Stocco
Summary: Measuring the rotational and translational Brownian motion of single spherical particles can reveal dissipations due to particle-environment interaction. The experiments conducted in this article demonstrate the measurement of in-plane translational and rotational drag coefficients for a single spherical Brownian particle. These drag coefficients are influenced by particle size, particle-wall distance, and viscous dissipations. Measurements on Janus particles close to solid walls and lipid bilayer membranes reveal that particle-wall distance and size can be determined by hydrodynamic models for particles close to walls. For particles partially wrapped by lipid membranes, when there is no strong binding interaction, translational and rotational drags are significantly larger compared to non-wrapped particles. The dissipations in the deformed membrane cap region also contribute strongly to the drag coefficients.
JOURNAL OF COLLOID AND INTERFACE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Yvon Briend, Eric Chatelet, Regis Dufour, Franck Legrand, Sophie Baudin
Summary: The REDEAT method proposed in this study can determine real six-axial shaker displacements by using measured linear accelerations, which is effective for validating the dynamic behavior model of on-board equipment. By solving a system of nonlinear time-differential equations through numerical integration with Newmark and Newton-Raphson schemes, and using data processing tools to evaluate the deviation between real and intended forced displacements, the method overcomes the classical divergence issue inherent to numerical integration.
MECHANICAL SYSTEMS AND SIGNAL PROCESSING
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Xin Bai, Mijia Yang, Baoyun Zhao
Summary: This paper proposes a new method to filter the effect of camera motions through background templates, and analyzes the impact of template sizes and brightness on monitored displacement accuracy. Experimental results demonstrate that the method successfully filters various camera motions, improving displacement-monitoring accuracy.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Cao YuWen, Zeng XiangFang, Li ZhengBin, Wang ShuoFan, Bao Feng, Xie Jun, Li Li, Li YouMing
Summary: This study deployed fiber-optic gyroscopes and seismometers on the same base plate to continuously record seismic signals, successfully observing Love waves. By comparing the recorded data, clear velocities and incident angles were obtained, providing important insights for seismology research.
CHINESE JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICS-CHINESE EDITION
(2022)
Article
Automation & Control Systems
Xiaoming Liu, Yuyang Li, Lei Li, Masaru Kojima, Qing Shi, Qiang Huang, Toshio Fukuda, Tatsuo Arai
Summary: This article proposes a cost-effective solution for three-dimensional orientation control at the microscale, combining hydrodynamic rotation and piezo-actuator. Experimental results demonstrate the successful achievement of three-dimensional orientation control for microbeads and mouse oocytes.
IEEE-ASME TRANSACTIONS ON MECHATRONICS
(2022)