Micromanipulation of Flexible and Rigid Objects

机器人学和计算机视觉程序建议#：0329106标题：柔性和刚性对象的微操作PI：罗恩·卢米亚新墨西哥大学这项工作的目标是更好地从理论和实践上理解如何抓住尺寸在1-100微米之间的刚性和柔性对象。我们将为离子聚合物金属复合材料(IPMC)材料开发一个模型，该材料将用于实现微夹持器。这种电活性材料在只有几伏特的驱动下表现出很大的偏转。从技术上讲，我们将探索两个基本领域。第一个问题涉及到IPMC材料可以被切割得多小，同时仍然起到微夹爪的作用。我们将开发一种新的模型来研究这种材料的微观性质。使用这个模型，我们将预测微夹爪的性能，例如，强度，并通过建造各种微夹爪来测试该模型。第二个问题与释放对象有关。由于小物体的重力比其他粘附力小几个数量级，因此将探索一种新的释放物体的方法。我们建议在微夹持器手指试图释放物体的时刻向其注入短电压脉冲。这将改变存储在手指上的静电电荷的极性，从而将物体从手指上驱离。这项工作的影响可能是巨大的，因为微夹持器是一种使各种应用能够实现的技术。将需要微型夹持器来抓取、操纵和放置小部件来创造产品。对于柔性物体，微型抓取器可以操纵细胞，以用于快速和廉价的DNA处理等应用。

Robotics and Computer Vision ProgramABSTRACTProposal #: 0329106Title: Micromanipulation of Flexible and Rigid ObjectsPI: Ron LumiaUniversity of New MexicoThe goal of this work is to develop a better theoretical and practical understanding of how to grasp rigid and flexible objects that range in size between 1-100 microns. We will develop a model for the ionic polymer metal composite (IPMC) material that will be used to implement a microgripper. This electroactive material exhibits large deflection from only a few volts of actuation. Technically, there are two fundamental areas we will explore. The first relates to how small the IPMC material can be cut and still function as a microgripper. We will develop a new model for the microscale properties of this material. Using this model we will predict microgripper performance, e.g., strength, and test the model by building a variety of microgrippers. The second issue relates to releasing objects. Since gravity for small objects is several orders of magnitude smaller than other adhesive forces, a new approach to release objects will be explored. We propose to inject a short voltage pulse into a microgripper finger just at the moment it tries to release an object. This will change the polarity of the electrostatic charge stored at the finger, thus driving the object from the finger. The impact of this work can be significant because the microgripper is an enabling technology for a variety of applications. Microgrippers will be needed to grasp, manipulate, and place small components to create products. For flexible objects, microgrippers can manipulate cells for applications such as rapid and inexpensive DNA processing.