Capillary Gripping and Self-Alignment: A Route Toward Autonomous Heterogeneous Assembly
article
We present a pick-and-place approach driven by capillarity for highly precise and cost-effective assembly of mesoscopic components onto structured substrates. Based on competing liquid bridges, the technology seamlessly combines programmable capillary grasping, handling, and passive releasing with capillary self-alignment of components onto prepatterned assembly sites. The performance of the capillary gripper is illustrated by comparing the measured lifting capillary forces with those predicted by a hydrostatic model of the liquid meniscus. Two component release strategies, based on either axial or shear capillary forces, are discussed and experimentally validated. The release-and-assembly process developed for a continuously moving assembly substrate provides a roll-to-roll-compatible technology for high-resolution and high-throughput component assembly. cop. 2015 IEEE.
TNO Identifier
527794
ISSN
15523098
Source
IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 31(4), pp. 1033-1043.
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Article nr.
7164355
Pages
1033-1043
Files
To receive the publication files, please send an e-mail request to TNO Repository.