Journal
IEEE ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION LETTERS
Volume 7, Issue 2, Pages 2156-2161Publisher
IEEE-INST ELECTRICAL ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS INC
DOI: 10.1109/LRA.2022.3143306
Keywords
Automation at micro-nano scales; micro/nano robots; swarm robotics
Categories
Funding
- International Max Planck Research School for Intelligent Systems (IMPRS-IS)
- UM-SJTU JI
- Belgian Science Policy Office [IAP 7/38]
- Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique [PDR T.0129.18]
- French ANR Program Equipex ROBOTEX Project [ANR-10-EQPX-44-01]
- EUR EIPHI Program [ANR-17-EURE-0002]
- French Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Swiss National Science Foundation through the CoDiCell Project [ANR-17-CE33-0009]
- Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Turkey
- Max Planck Society
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR) [ANR-17-CE33-0009] Funding Source: Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR)
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Traditional robotic systems are not directly applicable to micro-scale object manipulation, thus necessitating the design of micro-robotic manipulation systems. This study demonstrates a method for autonomous position control of passive particles at the air-water interface using a collective of spinning micro-disks, showcasing the system's capabilities.
Traditional robotic systems have proven to be instrumental in object manipulation tasks for automated manufacturing processes. Object manipulation in such cases typically involves transport, pick-and-place and assembly of objects using automated conveyors and robotic arms. However, the forces at microscopic scales (e.g., surface tension, Van der Waals, electrostatic) can be qualitatively and quantitatively different from those at macroscopic scales. These forces render the release of objects difficult, and hence, traditional systems cannot be directly transferred to small scales (below a few millimeters). Consequently, novel micro-robotic manipulation systems have to be designed to take into account these scaling effects. Such systems could be beneficial for micro-fabrication processes and for biological studies. Here, we show autonomous position control of passive particles floating at the air-water interface using a collective of self-organized spinning micro-disks with a diameter of 300 mu m. First, we show that the spinning micro-disks collectives generate azimuthal flows that cause passive particles to orbit around them. We then develop a closed-loop controller to demonstrate autonomous position control of passive particles without physical contact. Finally, we showcase the capability of our system to split from an expanded to several circular collectives while holding the particle at a fixed target. Our system's contact-free object manipulation capability could be used for transporting delicate biological objects and for guiding self-assembly of passive objects for micro-fabrication.
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