Hexagonal Digital Actuator array for Micro Conveyance Application

Abstract

An actuator array dedicated to the collaborative actuation is presented in this paper. The array consists of several elementary digital actuators to carry out planar conveyance tasks. Each elementary actuator of this array is based on an electromagnetic principle and has an ability to achieve six discrete positions in a 2D plane. A semi-analytical model has been developed to compute the electromagnetic and magnetic forces, which helps to design an actuator prototype. The homogenous behaviour of all elementary actuators of the array has particularly been studied using the model. An array prototype has then been realized using laser cutting and rapid prototyping technique. This prototype is based on a honeycomb architecture and composed of seven elementary actuators. Experiments has been conducted to characterize the actuator array performances. The pulse duration needed to switch the actuators and the energy consumption has been calculated. Finally, the principle of conveyance using the array is detailed and the collaborative actuation have been experimentally tested and shown.