Haptics in Micro- and Nano-Manipulation

One of the motivations for the development of wirelessly guided untethered magnetic devices (UMDs), such as microrobots and nanorobots, is the continuous demand to manipulate, sort, and assemble micro-objects with high level of accuracy and dexterity. UMDs can function as microgrippers or manipulators and move micro-objects with or without direct contact. In this case, the UMDs can be directly teleoperated by an operator using haptic tele-manipulation systems. The aim of this chapter is threefold: first, to provide a mathematical framework to design a scaled bilateral tele-manipulation system to achieve wireless actuation of micro-objects using magnetically-guided UMDs; second, to demonstrate closed-loop stability based on absolute stability theory; third, to provide experimental case studies performed on haptic devices to manipulate microrobots and assemble micro-objects. In this chapter, we are concerned with some fundamental concepts of electromagnetics and low-Reynolds number hydrodynamics to understand the stability and performance of haptic devices in micro- and nano-manipulation applications.