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Micromachines
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Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II
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Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "A：Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 15166

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Aude Bolopion

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
FEMTO-ST Institute, AS2M Department, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Université de Franche-Comté/CNRS/ENSMM, Besançon, France
Interests: non contact actuation; microrobotics; untethered microrobots; magnetic actuation; dielectrophoresis; laser based manipulation; lab on chips
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The ability to displace, orientate, fabricate, and characterize micrometer scale objects has become increasingly important, with applications ranging from the electronic industry to the biomedical domain. Two major approaches are currently investigated: contact-based and non contact-based manipulation. They both face similar issues: increasing the dexterity of tools while minimizing their size, increasing the velocity and the reliability of manipulation and improving the comprehension of physics at a small scale. In this Special Issue, we aim to highlight some of the recent developments that will pave the way towards more efficient micromanipulation. We invite research papers, reviews, and shorter communications that focus on tethered or untethered microrobotic systems for the manipulation, fabrication, or characterization of micrometer-sized objects. Topics of particular interest include, but are not limited to, modeling, design, fabrication, path planning and control of microrobots, as well as characterization at small scales.

Dr. Aude Bolopion
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Contact and non contact micromanipulation
  • Microrobotics
  • Untethered robots
  • Microgrippers
  • Position and force sensing at small scales
  • Modeling and design of microrobots
  • Control and path planning for micromanipulation

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 1631 KiB  
Article
Design of a 3DOF XYZ Bi-Directional Motion Platform Based on Z-Shaped Flexure Hinges
by Jinqiang Gan, Jiarong Long and Ming-Feng Ge
Micromachines 2022, 13(1), 21; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi13010021 - 24 Dec 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3629
Abstract
This paper presents a design of a 3DOF XYZ bi-directional motion platform based on Z-shaped flexure hinges. In the presented platform, bridge-type mechanisms and Z-shaped flexure hinges are adopted to amplify its output displacement. Bi-direction motion along the X-axis and Y-axis follows the [...] Read more.
This paper presents a design of a 3DOF XYZ bi-directional motion platform based on Z-shaped flexure hinges. In the presented platform, bridge-type mechanisms and Z-shaped flexure hinges are adopted to amplify its output displacement. Bi-direction motion along the X-axis and Y-axis follows the famous differential moving principle DMP, and the bi-directional motion along the Z-axis is realized by using the reverse arrangement of the Z-shaped flexure hinges along the X-axis and Y-axis. Statics analysis of the proposed platform is carried out by the energy method, compliance matrix method, and force balance principle. Meanwhile, the Lagrange method is used to analyze the dynamics of the platform. A series of simulations are conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed design. The simulation results show that the average displacements of the platform in the XYZ-axis are ±125.58 μm, ±126.37 μm and ±568.45 μm, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II)
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13 pages, 3701 KiB  
Article
Laser Actuated Microgripper Using Optimized Chevron-Shaped Actuator
by Belal Ahmad, Hugo Chambon, Pierre Tissier and Aude Bolopion
Micromachines 2021, 12(12), 1487; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi12121487 - 30 Nov 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2485
Abstract
In this paper, we propose a laser actuated microgripper that can be activated remotely for micromanipulation applications. The gripper is based on an optothermally actuated polymeric chevron-shaped structure coated with optimized metallic layers to enhance its optical absorbance. Gold is used as a [...] Read more.
In this paper, we propose a laser actuated microgripper that can be activated remotely for micromanipulation applications. The gripper is based on an optothermally actuated polymeric chevron-shaped structure coated with optimized metallic layers to enhance its optical absorbance. Gold is used as a metallic layer due to its good absorption of visible light. The thermal deformation of the chevron-shaped actuator with metallic layers is first modeled to identify the parameters affecting its behavior. Then, an optimal thickness of the metallic layers that allows the largest possible deformation is obtained and compared with simulation results. Next, microgrippers are fabricated using conventional photolithography and metal deposition techniques for further characterization. The experiments show that the microgripper can realize an opening of 40 µm, a response time of 60 ms, and a generated force in the order of hundreds of µN. Finally, a pick-and-place experiment of 120 µm microbeads is conducted to confirm the performance of the microgripper. The remote actuation and the simple fabrication and actuation of the proposed microgripper makes it a highly promising candidate to be utilized as a mobile microrobot for lab-on-chip applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II)
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16 pages, 1459 KiB  
Article
Path Planning for 3-D In-Hand Manipulation of Micro-Objects Using Rotation Decomposition
by Pardeep Kumar, Michaël Gauthier and Redwan Dahmouche
Micromachines 2021, 12(8), 986; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi12080986 - 19 Aug 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2035
Abstract
Robotic manipulation and assembly of micro and nanocomponents in confined spaces is still a challenge. Indeed, the current proposed solutions that are highly inspired by classical industrial robotics are not currently able to combine precision, compactness, dexterity, and high blocking forces. In a [...] Read more.
Robotic manipulation and assembly of micro and nanocomponents in confined spaces is still a challenge. Indeed, the current proposed solutions that are highly inspired by classical industrial robotics are not currently able to combine precision, compactness, dexterity, and high blocking forces. In a previous work, we proposed 2-D in-hand robotic dexterous manipulation methods of arbitrary shaped objects that considered adhesion forces that exist at the micro and nanoscales. Direct extension of the proposed method to 3-D would involve an exponential increase in complexity. In this paper, we propose an approach that allows to plan for 3-D dexterous in-hand manipulation with a moderate increase in complexity. The main idea is to decompose any 3-D motion into a 3-D translation and three rotations about specific axes related to the object. The obtained simulation results show that 3-D in-hand dexterous micro-manipulation of arbitrary objects in presence of adhesion forces can be planned in just few seconds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II)
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10 pages, 4383 KiB  
Article
Low-Cost Laser Micromachining Super Hydrophilic–Super Hydrophobic Microgrooves for Robotic Capillary Micromanipulation of Microfibers
by Bo Chang, Yuhang Feng, Jialong Jin and Quan Zhou
Micromachines 2021, 12(8), 854; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi12080854 - 21 Jul 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2303
Abstract
Capillary self-alignment technique can achieve highly accurate and fast alignment of micro components. Capillary self-alignment technique relies on the confinement of liquid droplets at receptor sites where hydrophobic–hydrophilic patterns are widely used. This paper reports a low-cost microsecond pulse laser micromachining method for [...] Read more.
Capillary self-alignment technique can achieve highly accurate and fast alignment of micro components. Capillary self-alignment technique relies on the confinement of liquid droplets at receptor sites where hydrophobic–hydrophilic patterns are widely used. This paper reports a low-cost microsecond pulse laser micromachining method for fabrication of super hydrophilic–super hydrophobic grooves as receptor sites for capillary self-alignment of microfibers. We investigated the influence of major manufacturing parameters on groove sizes and wetting properties. The effects of the width (20 µm–100 µm) and depth (8 µm–36 µm) of the groove on the volume of water droplet contained inside the groove were also investigated. We show that by altering scanning speed, using a de-focused laser beam, we can modify the wetting properties of the microgrooves from 10° to 120° in terms of the contact angle. We demonstrated that different types of microfibers including natural and artificial microfibers can self-align to the size matching super hydrophilic–super hydrophobic microgrooves. The results show that super hydrophilic–super hydrophobic microgrooves have great potential in microfiber micromanipulation applications such as natural microfiber categorization, fiber-based microsensor construction, and fiber-enforced material development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II)
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16 pages, 9048 KiB  
Article
Towards a Comprehensive and Robust Micromanipulation System with Force-Sensing and VR Capabilities
by Georges Adam, Subramanian Chidambaram, Sai Swarup Reddy, Karthik Ramani and David J. Cappelleri
Micromachines 2021, 12(7), 784; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi12070784 - 30 Jun 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3000
Abstract
In this modern world, with the increase of complexity of many technologies, especially in the micro and nanoscale, the field of robotic manipulation has tremendously grown. Microrobots and other complex microscale systems are often to laborious to fabricate using standard microfabrication techniques, therefore [...] Read more.
In this modern world, with the increase of complexity of many technologies, especially in the micro and nanoscale, the field of robotic manipulation has tremendously grown. Microrobots and other complex microscale systems are often to laborious to fabricate using standard microfabrication techniques, therefore there is a trend towards fabricating them in parts then assembling them together, mainly using micromanipulation tools. Here, a comprehensive and robust micromanipulation platform is presented, in which four micromanipulators can be used simultaneously to perform complex tasks, providing the user with an intuitive environment. The system utilizes a vision-based force sensor to aid with manipulation tasks and it provides a safe environment for biomanipulation. Lastly, virtual reality (VR) was incorporated into the system, allowing the user to control the probes from a more intuitive standpoint and providing an immersive platform for the future of micromanipulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Robotic Micromanipulation, Volume II)
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