SBIR Phase I: Novel Manufacturing Method for Long Length Linear Encoders

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目将探索一种生产高精度线性编码器（用于执行精确位置测量的传感器）的新制造方法的可行性。到2026年，编码器市场预计将增长到37亿美元。高端自动化、智能制造和设备持续小型化的需求对编码器的准确性和可用性提出了越来越高的要求。与目前可用的解决方案相比，该技术将提供更精确、更强大的编码器，交货时间更短，价格更低。拟议的研究将有助于建立为新一代增量和绝对位置传感器生产精密编码器光栅所需的核心技术，有助于确保供应链的安全和多样化。本课题的智力价值在于探索一种制造编码器光栅的新方法。光学编码器光栅传统上是用接触光刻技术生产的。该工艺的缺点是光掩膜磨损加快，产量低，对污染敏感，精度和分辨率有限。该项目有望通过开发一种新颖的微加工方法来消除或显著改善所有这些缺点。研究目标是解决由于所需基板的巨大尺寸和极端精度要求而产生的独特挑战。研究任务包括早期原型的构建，机械部件的表征，光学系统的设计和优化，以及一些参数研究来量化所提出的制造方法的性能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will explore the feasibility of a novel manufacturing method for producing high-accuracy linear encoders (sensors used to perform precision position measurements). The encoder market is expected to grow to $3.7 billion by 2026. The need for high-end automation, smart manufacturing, and continuous device miniaturization puts ever-increasing demands on the accuracy and availability of encoders. The proposed technology will provide more accurate, more robust encoders with shorter lead times and lower prices than currently available solutions. The proposed research will help establish a core technology required to produce precision encoder gratings for a new generation of incremental and absolute position sensors, helping to secure and diversify the supply chain. The intellectual merit of this project is to investigate a new method to manufacture encoder gratings. Optical encoder gratings are traditionally produced by contact lithography. The drawbacks of this process are accelerated photomask wear, low yield, sensitivity to contamination, and limited accuracy and resolution. This project is expected to eliminate or significantly improve all of these drawbacks by developing a novel microfabrication approach. Research objectives are to address the unique challenges resulting from the substantial size of the required substrate and the extreme accuracy requirements. Research tasks include construction of an early prototype, characterizing mechanical components, design and optimization of the optical system, and several parametric studies to quantify the performance of the proposed fabrication method.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.