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We design and demonstrate a compact, robust and simple to assemble and tune permanent magnet suitable for NMR relaxometry measurements of microfluidic flows. Soft-magnetic stainless steel plates, incorporated inside the magnet airgap, are…
In this study, a new type of thin, compact, and light weighed diaphragm micro-pump has been successfully developed to actuate the liquid by the vibration of a diaphragm. The micro-diaphragm pump with two valves is fabricated in an aluminum…
Many organisms leverage an interplay between shape and activity to generate motion and adapt to their environment. Embedding such feedback into synthetic microrobots could eliminate the need for sensors, software, and actuators, yet current…
Background: Upper-limb weakness and tremor (4--12 Hz) limit activities of daily living (ADL) and reduce adherence to home rehabilitation. Objective: To assess technical feasibility and clinician-relevant signals of a sensor-fused wearable…
Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) are a class of smart materials that exhibit a macroscopic contraction of up to 5% when heated via an electric current. This effect can be exploited for the development of novel unconventional actuators. Despite…
This paper presents the design, fabrication, and experimental characterization of a peristaltic micropump. The micropump is composed of two layers fabricated from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) material. The first layer has a rectangular…
Miniaturization of devices inculcates the need for small-sized actuators. Actuators in the size of a few centimeters are not uncommon but miniature devices need ones that are less than a few centimeters in dimension. Market for such…
Accurate and integrable control of different flows within microfluidic channels is crucial to further development of lab-on-a-chip and fully integrated adaptable structures. Here we introduce a flexible microactuator that buckles at a high…
This study is part of research aiming at increasing the range of dynamic tasks for teleoperated field robotics in order to allow operators to use the full range of human motions without being limited by the dynamics of the robotic…
Compared to traditional rigid robotics, soft robotics has attracted increasing attention due to its advantages as compliance, safety, and low cost. As an essential part of soft robotics, the soft robotic gripper also shows its superior…
Synthetic microswimmers offer models for cell motility and their tunability makes them promising candidates for biomedical applications. Here we measure the acoustic propulsion of bimetallic micro-rods that, when trapped at the nodal plane…
This paper presents the design and experimental validation of a bio-inspired soft aquatic robot, the DilBot, which uses a bistable shape memory alloy-driven engine for pulse-jet locomotion. Drawing inspiration from the efficient swimming…
Here we present the design of an insect-scale microrobot that generates lift by spinning its wings. This is in contrast to most other microrobot designs at this size scale which rely on flapping wings to produce lift. The robot has a wing…
In this paper, we propose a novel type of serial robot with minimal actuation. The robot is a serial rigid structure consisting of multiple links connected by passive joints and of movable actuators. The novelty of this robot is that the…
We present the modeling, design, fabrication and feedback control of an earthworm-inspired soft robot capable of crawling on surfaces by actively manipulating the frictional force between its body and the surface. Earthworms are segmented…
Micro-scale swimming robots have been envisaged for many medical applications such as targeted drug delivery, where the microrobot will be expected to navigate in a fluid through channels carrying a payload. Alternatively, in many cases,…
Modern robots embody power and precision control. Yet, as robots undertake tasks that apply forces on humans, this power brings risk of injury. Soft robotic actuators use deformation to produce smooth, continuous motions and conform to…
The current understanding of motility through body shape deformation of microorganisms and the knowledge of fluid flows at the microscale provides ample examples for mimicry and design of soft microrobots. In this work, a two-dimensional…
In this paper we present control strategies for implementing reconfigurable planar microassmbly using multiple stress-engineered MEMS microrobots (MicroStressBots). A MicroStressBot is an electrostatic microrobot that consists of an…
Faced with strong demand for robots working in underwater pipeline environments, a novel underwater multi-model locomotion robot is designed and studied in this research. By mimicking the earthworm's metameric body, the robot is segmented…