Microsystem Technologies

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00542-018-3861-y (0123456789().,-volV)(0123456789().,-volV)

TECHNICAL PAPER

Design, fabrication and testing of a 2 DOF compliant flexural

microgripper
Royson Donate Dsouza1,2 • Karanth P. Navin2 • Theo Theodoridis3 • Priyaranjan Sharma2

Received: 21 February 2018 / Accepted: 27 February 2018

Ó Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2018

Abstract
This paper presents the development of a monolithic two degrees of freedom (2 DOF), piezoelectric actuated microgripper
for the manipulation of micro-objects. Micromanipulation and microassembly are the major subjects of interest in recent
times and are becoming increasingly important in many domains. An effort is being made to develop a novel 2 DOF
microgripper, each jaw being able to move independently to grasp and rotate objects of micro sizes. Microgripper is
developed based on the compliant mechanism. The designed 2 DOF compliant microgripper is modeled using FEM and
PRBM approach further validated experimentally. The microgripper is actuated using APA 120-S piezoelectric stack
actuators. The displacement of the microgripper and the gripping force is measured by image processing technique using
LabVIEW tools. The microgripper is subjected to various tests to measure the displacement amplification ratio and
micromanipulation experiments. Wire of various sizes are used to test the grasping and rotating sequence of the micro-
gripper. The theoretical, simulation and experimental results reveal the good performance of the microgripper.

1 Introduction posing challenges in visualization (Tamadazte et al. 2009),

force control (Beyeler et al. 2007a) and control stratergy
The field of Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) has (Rakotondrabe et al. 2009).
diversified in the past decade along with the plethora of A large number of micro-scaled objects and parts are
applications and techniques. In order to simplify the assembly developed and fabricated using various micro-machining
of microsystems, handling and manipulation of micro objects techniques. Though there is a lot of advancement in the
have been one of the greatest interest and challenge to scien- micro-machining technology, micro assembly still forms a
tists and engineers. The recent development of MEMS has challenging task as it finds its wide application in the
increased the demand of micromanipulation techniques. assembly of optical fibres in optical switches, MEMS
Micro gripper is one of the key tools to comprehend the optical accelerometer, variable optical attenuator, Fourier
assembly of objects in the micro level. Fourier transform transform spectrometer (Noell et al. 2002). Essentially a 2
(FTIR) microspectrometer for example is a complex Micro- DOF motion is required to grasp and rotate the fibres and
Opto-Electro-Mechanical System (MOEMS) whose insert it into the U-groove to produce optical switches
microassembly involves precision alignment of hybrid silicon (Agnus et al. 2004). It also finds its essential needs in
and glass components (Rabenorosoa et al. 2009). Automated assembly of microparts in microassembly using visual
microassembly and precision alignment in micro scale has led servoing, microassembly of MOEMS using force control
to micromanipulation. In the process of microassembly the and microassembly of Reconfigurable Free Space Micro
micro objects have to be picked, oriented, aligned and released Optical Bench (RFS-MOB) (Agnus et al. 2013). Most of
the assembly requires sequential manipulation of compo-
nents ranging from 1 lm to 1 mm in size. Micro-objects are
& Royson Donate Dsouza fragile and requires control of interaction forces to suc-
[email protected] cessfully manipulate and position them as desired.
1 Various principles of micromanipulation such as suction
Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Dubai Campus,
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Zesch et al. 1997; Pierrat et al. 2004), cryogenic (Lang
2 et al. 2005; Kochan 1997), electrostatic (Beyeler et al.
National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal, India
3
2007b; Enikov et al. 2005) and friction manipulation is
University of Salford, Manchester, UK

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 Microsystem Technologies

employed (Xu 2012) in various microgripper designs. their compliance property. They can be monolithically fabri-
Friction micromanipulation is used widely because of size, cated which reduces assembly error and maintain the preci-
cost, reliability issues, and the fabrication aspect in par- sion of the microgripper. Various types of compliant
ticular. Micromanipulation based on friction gripping mechanisms like single stage leverage mechanism (Nah and
methodology has led to the development of several Zhong 2007), two stage flexural mechanism (Dsouza et al.
microgrippers past decade. Several actuation technique are 2015; Gao et al. 2012), hybrid compliant structure integrating
used in friction manipulation such as electrostatic actuated cantilever beam and flexural hinge configurations (Zubir and
microgrippers (Kim et al. 1991; Chu and Pister 1994; Shirinzadeh 2009), four bar mechanism (Beroz et al. 2011), 2
Wierzbicki et al. 2007; Kalaiarasi and Thilagar 2012; DOF modular design (Xu 2012), Roberts parallel guiding
Amjad et al. 2008; Boudaoud et al. 2013), electrothermal mechanism (RPGM) (Shi et al. 2013), double cantilever beam
microgrippers (Duc et al. 2008b; Andersen et al. 2008; Ali mechanism (Lu et al. 2014).
et al. 2011; Zhang et al. 2013), shape memory alloy (SMA) A considerable enhancement is seen in the field of force
actuated microgrippers (Kohl et al. 2000; Houston et al. sensing techniques. To manipulate any object without
2007; Kyung et al. 2008) and piezoelectric based micro- damage force as to be monitored and controlled. The force
grippers among which PZT based microgrippers find its exerted by the microgripper on the object is measured
utmost importance due to the advantages of high force to using different sensors based on piezoresistive, piezoelec-
weight ratio, high operational bandwidth and unlimited tric, optical, visual or capacitive principles. Grasping force
motion resolution. is measured based on the strain gauge technique for the
Due to the major drawback of small displacement range complaint based microgrippers where the strain gauge is
of PZT materials Compliant mechanisms have played a placed at the surface of the flexural joints. Force sensing
vital role in the development of the microgripper. Piezo- using piezoresistive techniques finds advantages of inte-
electric based compliant microgrippers are designed con- grating the sensor by doping into the silicon (Duc et al.
sidering the parameters of input force, displacement 2008a). This makes the microgripper monolithic and
amplification ratio and the material selection (Gao et al. independent of external sensors. The sensing finger can be
2012) (Table 1). made up of piezoelectric material itself and hence the force
Microgrippers using different types types of design struc- can be directly measured using the princile of piezoelectric
tures, compliant mechanisms, various force and displacement effect (Jain et al. 2014). Alternatively at the microscale
measurement techniques have been studied by the researchers poly-vinylidene-di-flouride (PVDF) film is used which has
this past decade. PZT actuated microgrippers based on bio high linearity and bandwidth (Kim et al. 2005; Dafflon
inspired designs like fish bone structure (Martinez and Pane- et al. 2006). Microgrippers based on capacitive principle of
pucci 2007) and crabs claw (Khare et al. 2007) provided good force sensing serve both as actuating and sensing purpose
displacement amplification. Flexural based compliant (Beyeler et al. 2007a). The focus of the research is force
microgrippers have higher advantages and flexibility due to sensing through vision which does not require any

Table 1 Compliant based piezoelectric microgrippers

l gripper material Fabrication Displacement Force DOF PZT actuator/manufacturer References
method sensing sensing

Stainless steel WEDM Strain gauge – 1 – Kemper (2004)

Ò
SU-8 Photo- CCD Camera – 1 AE0505D18 Thorlabs Martinez and Panepucci
lithiography (2007)
Spring steel l-WEDM CCD Camera – 1 LVPZT P-842 Physik Nah and Zhong (2007)
InstrumentsÒ
Al-7075 WEDM TESATRONICÒ E-Probe 1 AE0505D16 ThorlabsÒ Zubir and Shirinzadeh
TTA 20 (2009)
Silicon DRIE SEM – 1 Piezo stepper Beroz et al. (2011)
Al-7075 – Capacitance Strain 2 PAS005 ThorlabsÒ Shi et al. (2013)
gauge
Titanium alloy WEDM Laser vibro-meter Strain 1 PTBS-200 PiezoDrive Wang et al. (2013)
(TC4) gauge
Al-7075 – – Strain 2 PAS005 ThorlabsÒ Lu et al. (2014)
gauge

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instrumentation within the microgripper and provide static microgripper tip displaces at an angle h providing the
force with high resolution. Generally CCD camera is used maximum force. The left jaw is then actuated by the
which provides a higher flexibility to measure force of Piezoelectric stack actuator APA 120S to rotate the cable
more complex geometries other than simple cantilever fibre which causes two degrees of motion. The test setup is
beam (Greminger et al. 2002; Yang et al. 2001). illustrated in Fig. 2. The monolithic microgripper is actu-
Research in development of different types of micro- ated by 2 APA 120S stack actuators having a maximum
grippers with various degrees of freedom, displacement displacement of 120 lm for maximum voltage of 160 V.
and force sensors and actuators have taken place this past The microgripper is clamped to the base with M2 size bolts
decade. A novel idea of using piezoelectric stack actuators with a additional spacing between the microgripper and the
to actuate a fabricated two degree of freedom microgripper base to avoid surface contact. The stack actuators are
is presented in this paper. Labview based Image processing clamped to microgripper using attachments. The APA
is developed to measure the tip displacement and force of stack actuator is experimentally tested for its performance
the microgripper providing a platform of sensorized envi- and various load characteristics which is presented in
ronment of vision sensing. The compliant microgripper is previous work (Dsouza and Karanth 2016). Keeping the
mathematically modelled using Lobontius design of flex- actuator and sensor parameters into consideration as well
ural hinges and FEM analysis is performed to validate the as the performance of the microgripper into account few
results. The designed microgripper is fabricated using designs are tested in previous work (D’Souza et al. 2017)
WEDM process and experimental testing is conducted for and the optimized design is presented in this section along
the same. with its mathematical modeling and FE analysis. The
microgripper is modeled in CATIA V5R19 package by
Dessault SystemsÒ. The FE analysis is performed using
2 Configuration and design ANSYSÒV15 workbench environment.
of the microgripper The configuration of the microgripper along with its
physical dimensions is provided in Fig. 3.
The microgripper is designed to grasp and rotate the object The left part consists of a single stage leverage mech-
ranging between 50 and 500 lm. The object initially has to anism and a parallelogram mechanism and the right part
be grasped and after it has completely grasped it should consists of a dual stage leverage mechanism and a paral-
perform the operation of rotation. The micromanipulation lelogram mechanism. The right part of the microgripper
sequence is provided in Fig. 1. has of two stages of amplification. Both of these mecha-
In the initial positioning the optic fibre is within the nisms are compliant leverage mechanisms providing larger
grasping domain between the left and the right arm. The output to input ratio increasing the displacement amplifi-
right arm is actuated by piezoelectric stack actuator APA cation factor. Compliant parallelogram mechanisms are
120S which completely grasps the cable wherein the employed to ensure parallel movement of the gripping
jaws. Left part of the microgripper has single stage
Optic Fibre 500
μm
amplification comprising compliant leverage mechanism.
Holes of size M2 are provided to safely clamp the micro-
Right Arm
Left Arm gripper to the base plate. Input for the microgripper is
provided at the points A and M using piezoelectric stack
actuator. The corner fillet flexural hinge is implemented in

(A) (B)

(C) (D)
Fig. 1 Micromanipulation sequence performed by the microgripper Fig. 2 Detailed view of the experimental setup

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Fig. 3 Configuration of the 2 Grasping Domain

DOF microgripper
Left part of the Right part of the m
1m
microgripper microgripper
O4 O3
0.5
mm
3mm
O7
O8
R 0.5mm

45mm
O5 D C
O6

Stage 2
02 01

0.5 N M L
mm

4mm
2mm A B Stage 1

R 0.5mm

35mm

the design and analyzed for its validation. The microgrip- flexural hinges and the rigid links for the right part of the
per is designed with all hinges being corner fillet hinges microgripper.
and FE analysis for output displacement and stress is per- The displacement component along the global axis x is,
formed for the same. Xn
u1x ¼ ðAix Ci;xFx þ Bix Ci;yFy þ Dix Ci;yMz þ Hix Ci;hMz Þ;
i¼l

3 Kinostatic synthesis of the microgripper ð1Þ

where the co-efficient’s Aix ; Bix ; Dix ; Hix ; that multiply the
An analytical method to synthesize the flexural based in compliance factors are detailed in Lobontiu (2002).
plane compliant mechanism is devised as per Lobontiu’s The displacement component along the global axis y is,
approach for compliant mechanisms (Lobontiu 2002). The
Xn
procedure is based on the strain energy and Castiglianos u1y ¼ ðAiy Ci;xFx þ Biy Ci;yFy þ Diy Ci;yMz þ Hiy Ci;hMz Þ;
displacement theorem and produces closed-form equations i¼l
that incorporate the compliances characterizing any ana- ð2Þ
lytically-defined hinge, together with the other geometric
and material properties of the compliant mechanism . where the co-efficient’s that multiply the compliance fac-
tors are Aiy , Biy , Diy , Hiy which are detailed in Lobontiu
3.1 Kinematic synthesis of the right part (2002).
The rotation angle of link l is:
In Lobontius approach each hinge has three degrees of Xn
hl;z ¼ ðDi;hz Ci;yMz þ Hi;hz Ci;hMz Þ; ð3Þ
freedom, therefore it can be modeled using three springs.
i¼l
For a planar serial mechanism utilizes loop-closure method
and then castiglianos second theorem is applied to obtain where the co-efficients Dl;hz ; Hi;hz ; are detailed in Lobontiu
three displacement of the spring at each node. The dis- (2002).
placement at each specific node of the planarserial mech- The in-plane compliance factors for corner fillet flexural
anisms is the sum of all corresponding deformations and hinge is given by:
rigid-body motions calculated over each individual link  rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi 
1 l  2r 2ð2r þ tÞ 4r p
from the link of interest to the last link. The rigid links are C1;xFx ¼ þ p ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi arctan 1 þ  ;
Ew t tð4r þ tÞ t 2
assumed to have zero compliance. Therefore it allows for
unitary formulation of both the rigid links and the flexure ð4Þ
hinges. Figure 4a shows the line diagram indicating the

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3 4ðl  2rÞðl2  lr þ r 2 Þ
C1;yFy ¼
Ew 3t3
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
tð4r þ tÞ½80r 4 þ 24r 3 t þ 8ð3 þ 2pÞr 2 t2 þ 4ð1 þ 2pÞrt3 þ p4t 
þ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
4 t5 ð4r þ tÞ5
4
40r 4 þ 8ir2 ð2r  tÞ þ 12r 3 t þ 4ð3 þ 2pÞr 2 t2 þ 2ð1 þ 2pÞrt3 þ pt2
ð5Þ
2t2 ð4r þ tÞ2
4l2 rð6r 2 þ 4rt þ t2 Þ ð2r þ tÞ½24ðl  rÞ2 r 2  8r 3 t þ 14r 2 t2 þ 8rt3 þ t4
þ  qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
t2 ð2r þ tÞð4r þ tÞ2 t5 ð4r þ tÞ5
rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
4r
arctan 1 þ ;
t

Substituting the parameters of corner fillet hinges in the

6l Eqs. (4), (5), (6) and (7) compliance parameters of the
C1;yMz ¼ 
Ewt3 ð2r þ tÞð4r þ tÞ3 corner fillet flexural hinge is obtained. The nodes in the
 right jaw of the microgripper are numbered from the input
ð4r þ tÞ½lð2r þ tÞð4r þ tÞ2 node to the output node. From the figure it is evident that
node 2 and node 9 are fixed. The mechanism has 8 blocked
 4r 2 ð16r 2 þ 13rt þ 3t2 Þ degrees of freedom as the terminal node 10 is not fixed.
rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2 4r The system is indeterminate. After making the system
þ 12r ð2r þ tÞ tð4r þ tÞ arctan 1þ ;
t determinate and inputting the input displacement as 30 lm
ð6Þ the static analysis of the planar mechanism is performed.
  Since all the flexible links are at 90 we have to sub-
12 2r
C1;hz Mz ¼ l  2r þ tð4r þ tÞð6r þ 4rt þ t2 Þ stitute / ¼ 0. Therefore we have Cos/ ¼ 0 and Sin/ ¼ 1.
Ewt3 ð2r þ tÞð4r þ tÞ3 The compliance factors CxFx ; CyFy ; CyMz ; ChMZ can
rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi 4r
2
þ 6rð2r þ tÞ tð4r þ tÞ arctan 1 þ : be found from Eqs. (4), (5), (6) and (7) respectively which
t
are tabulated in Table 2.
ð7Þ

Fig. 4 a Line diagram for the

right microgripper jaw, b line
diagram for the left
microgripper jaw

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Table 2 Compliance values of

ðCxFx Þs ðCyFy Þs CyFy CyMZ
the corner fillet flexural hinge
F1 3:926  10 6 1:253  10 3  3:678  10 3 1:47  10 3
F2 3:926  10 6 1:253  10 3  3:678  10 3 1:47  10 3
3 3
F3 3:926  10 6
1:253  10  3:678  10 1:47  10 3
3 3
F4 5:3346  10 5 1:23895  10  8:05  10 2:146  10 3
F5 5:3346  10 5 1:23895  10 3  8:05  10 3 2:146  10 3

Displacement at node 2 in x direction is zero, hence 3.2 Kinematic synthesis of the left part
u2x ¼ 0. From Eq. (3) A, B, D and H factors associated
with u2x are equated. The left part of the microgripper consists of a single stage
By substituting corresponding compliance factors from leverage mechanism. Figure 4b shows the equivalent
Table 2 we get u2x in terms of unknowns. Since displacement model of the left part of the microgripper. Since it is a
at node 8 in x direction is zero we get u8x ¼ 0. From Eq. (3), single stage amplification, DA is given by,
A, B, D and H factors associated with u2x are equated. By Dout CB
substituting corresponding compliance factors from Table 2 D:A ¼ ¼ ¼ 4:852:
Din CD
we get u8x in terms of unknowns. Rotation at node 2 and node
8 is zero, hence h2z ¼ 0 and h8z ¼ 0. By substituting the
corresponding compliance factors we get h2z and h8z in terms 3.3 Finite element analysis
of unknowns respectively. The input displacement to node 1
is known to be 30 lm. Therefore, u1y ¼ 30 lm. A, B, D and H The designed microgripper is subjected to FE analysis for
factors associated with u1y are equated. Hence the five output displacement and stress. The overall dimensions of
equations and five unknowns are solved using Gauss–Jordan the microgripper and the dimensions of the two types of
method and utilizing static equilibrium equations, output flexural hinges used are detailed in Fig. 3. The FE analysis
displacement at node 11 in x direction is obtained. Therefore, is performed by inputting a input displacement of 30 lm to
either sides of the microgripper. The FE analysis is per-
u11x ¼ 302:3 lm: ð8Þ
formed using ANSYS workbench environment. The
Also, material properties of Al-7075 is been employed due its
u11x compliance characteristics of higher resilience.
Displacement amplification ¼ ¼ 10:0758: The FE result of the total deformation for the left and the
u1y
right part is shown in the Fig. 5. From the FE analysis a
The loop closure method along with Castigliano’s dis- displacement amplification of 9.698 and 4.0323 is observed
placement theorem is employed to get the displacement for the right and left part respectively. Equivalent stress
equations as per Lobontius approach. The displacement analysis is performed and its results are shown in Fig. 6.
amplification obtained using this method is 10.0758 and is The stress results very clearly indicate the feasibility of the
very close to the result obtained using FEM. microgripper in the working zone.
The microgripper is also designed and analyzed for
circular hinges and rectangular hinges. Few results are

Fig. 5 Deformation results

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Fig. 6 Stress results

discussed here. Compared to the circular hinges, corner

fillet hinge is more bending compliant. Corner fillet flexural
hinges induce substantially lower stresses which is found to
be 26.8% less when compared to the circular hinges. The
percentage reduction in the DA ratio is found to be 25.96
and 32.76% for the right part when compared with corner
fillet and rectangular flexure hinge respectively. And sim-
ilar percentage reduction is observed in the left part to a
value of 6.45 and 8.048% when compared with with corner
fillet and rectangular flexural hinge respectively.
When corner fillet circular hinge is compared with the
rectangular hinge,a reduction of 7.79% of bending com-
pliance is observed but inducing higher stress levels
exceeding the yield limit of the material. From the FE
analysis it is evident that corner fillet compliant flexural Fig. 7 Size comparision of the fabricated microgripper
hinges have higher advantages compared to rectangular
and circular flexural hinges. The final fabricated microgripper is shown in Fig. 7. The
average surface roughness of fabricated microgripper was
measured using surface roughness tester and found to be in
4 Fabrication of the microgripper the range of 2–2.5 lm.
The fabricated microgripper is then fixed to a plate of
The two dimensional geometry of the microgripper is thickness 4 mm using M2 screws.
imported to ELCAM 2.0 software to generate the corre-
sponding numerical control (NC) program. The designed
microgripper is fabricated using wire electrical discharge 5 Displacement and force sensing
machining (WEDM) process in which Al-7075 is used as a
positive electrode and brass wire of diameter 0.25 lm is Sensing the displacement and force of the microgripper
used a negative electrode . In WEDM process, distilled forms a challenging task due to factors like high precision
water is used as a dielectric fluid to remove the melted and space constraint. Out of various sensing techniques
debris particles from the machining zone. The machining optical method is the most preferred method considering
of micro-gripper is carried out with an optimum setting of space constraints. Optical camera with image processing
control parameters tabulated in Table 3. is used to accurately measure the displacement and the
The machining characteristic of fabricated microgripper force. The measurement of the force can be carried out by
such as material removal rate is found to be 6.6 mm3 =min.

Table 3 Optimized machining parameters

Parameter Pulse on time (ls) Pulse off time (ls) Pulse current (A) Wire feed (m/min) Servo voltage (V) Servo feed (lm)

Value 112 40 12 3 36 2250

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the measurement of the deformation of a structure by shows in detail the edge detection in selected ROI along
vision. This technique does not require any instrumenta- with the corresponding edge strength profile.
tion within the microgripper and allows the measurement
of static forces with a very high resolution. It also pro- 5.1 Image processing for displacement
vides a view of the scene of the micromanipulation task measurements
being performed. Hence optical camera with Image pro-
cessing using LabVIEW from NATIONAL In order to determine the accuracy of the preliminary
INSTRUMENTSÒ is used for displacement and force image processing code, the laser pick up is used to find the
sensing. The data is then verified using OPTO NCDT correct value against which error could be calculated. Point
1402 laser pick up. distance calibration was carried out and the thickness of the
Image processing using edge detection technique is thicker gripper arm was used as a reference. The calibrated
carried out using LabVIEW vision assistant toolbox. value of microns per pixel will change whenever the
Image acquisition is done using Techmatrix 300K Pixel camera is repositioned and hence, the LabVIEW code is
webcam using USB interface. The image is stored as the designed to recalibrate this value prior to taking measure-
intensity values in the pixels as a matrix after which pixel ments. At the point of experimentation, each pixel value
to micrometer conversion method is fixed. Once the corresponded to 14.83 lm. For the experimental setup, the
image is calibrated color plane extraction is carried out by 1 mm microgripper was used and full voltage of 160 V was
selecting the luminance plane. This converts 512 bit applied to the piezostack. For this experiment, the graph as
image to 8 bit image. Low pass filter is used to reduce the shown in Fig. 9a, b. It can be observed a maximum error of
noise in the smoothening pallete. Since rake works on a 20.359059 was obtained at 160 V for this experiment. This
rectangular search region the search lines are drawn corresponds to an error in the measurement of 1.372 pixels.
parallel to the orientation of the rectangle. Region of
interest (ROI) is selected to reduce the overall processing 5.2 Image processing for force measurements
time instead of scanning the whole image. ROI is made
user defined to make the system independent. Figure 8 As previously discussed, image processing is a very
effective tool for displacement measurement; however, this

Fig. 8 Edge detection in the

defined ROI

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Fig. 9 Distance measurement comparison using laser pick-up and image processing a along X-axis. b Along Y-axis

Fig. 10 Gripping a 350 lm wire (the distance measurement in pixels)

can be extended to the measurement of force as well. The most detected edge and the right most detected edge in the
gripper was designed with one gripping arm to be thinner defined region of interest (ROI) is measured. From open
than the other. This allows it to deflect to measurable position to the contact position, it is observed that the
amounts without tainting the accuracy. In order to test this change in pixel measurements is the same for the two
method, the gripper was made to grip a wire of diameter ROIs. However, once the gripper is made to advance post
350 lm. the point when contact has been made, the deflection in the
It can be observed in Fig. 10. As the gripper arm is made upper ROI is greater than at the ROI at the point of contact.
to move closer to the wire, the distances between the left Thus, due to the application of force, this gripper arm can

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be considered analogous to a fixed cantilever beam. In a analytical and FE analysis. The experimental setup is
cantilever beam, the application of force at the free end shown in Fig. 14. A micrometer of least count 1 lm is been
creates a displacement. Knowledge of one entity F ¼ kx used in the set-up.The main purpose of the micrometer is to
will hence allow to calculate the other, where F is the force provide mechanical input displacement to the microgrip-
applied (in Newtons), x is the displacement (in meters), and per. The microgripper is connected together with the
k is the stiffness of the cantilever beam (N/m). guideway using a coupler fabricated using CNC which
transmits the force and displacement in the line of action of
the microgripper axis. To measure output displacement of
6 Experimental setup for the investigation the microgripper a high resolution laser pick up is used.
of the microgripper OPTO NCDT 1402 from Micro-EpsilonÒ having a reso-
lution of 1 lm is used. The fabricated microgripper is
The main aim of the investigation of the performance of mounted to the plate. This plate is further mounted on the
the microgripper is to perform micromanipulation and find cast iron block which is rigidly held to the base. Fixing
the displacement amplification ratio. microgripper on plate and then to the block gives more
Following are the experiments performed: protection to the microgripper and flexibility to position it
more accurately.
1. To test the displacement amplification ratio.
2. To evaluate the input force to the microgripper.
350
3. To demonstrate the grasping sequence.
4. To demonstrate the rotational sequence. Experimental
300

250 FEM
6.1 Testing the displacement amplification
Tip Displacement (µm)

of the microgripper
200

The kinematics of the microgripper is ascertained using an

150
experimental setup where the input is changed incremen-
tally and the output displacement is measured. An incre- 100
mental input displacement is given to the gripper using a
high resolution micrometer. The micrometer is fixed such 50
that it would push a stage that would transmit the dis-
placement to the input lever arm of the gripper. The whole 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
purpose of this setup is to experimentally determine the
Input Displacement (µm)
displacement amplification ratio for the right and the left
jaw of the microgripper and compare the same with Fig. 12 Comparision of displacement amplification ratio

Fig. 11 a Experimental results of input displacement vs output displacement for the right jaw. b Left jaw

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the experimental results vary by a percentage factor of 6.15

and 15.19% from the FE and analytical results respectively.

6.2 Experimental setup to evaluate the input

force to the microgripper.

One of the unique ways of predicting the input force to the

microgripper using Piezoelectric actuator is discussed in
the previous work using a cantilever beam and subsequent
plot for displacement–force–voltage for APA 120S is been
plotted as shown in Fig. 13.
To validate the results an experimental setup is designed
to evaluate the input force to the microgripper. This will
ensure the correctness of the experiment of force prediction
Fig. 13 3D plot of force using experimental data of APA-120S stack
and also will provide a platform to validate the predicted
actuator (Dsouza and Karanth 2016) results.
The setup is designed to accommodate two APA-120S
The experiment is carried out for right and left jaw. For piezo actuators, one for each axis, force sensor, Amplifiers
the given input displacement corresponding output dis- for the stack actuators and force sensor. Figure 14 details
placement is measured and plotted as shown in Fig. 11a, b. out the experimental setup developed to test the input force
A maximum of 240.53 and 133.34 lm tip displacement is to the microgripper.
observed in the right and left jaw respectively for the input APA-120S Piezoelectric actuator are mechanical mag-
displacement of 30 lm. For the detailed comparision the nified pre-loaded stack working in the voltage range of
tip displacement of the right jaw is compared with the  20 to 150 V. LC-75 is a bipolar linear AC/DC converter
analytical and FE results for the given input displacement used to produce stabilized DC voltages to the amplifier
as shown in Fig. 12. From the plot it can be inferred that with the current limitation of 0.12 A. LA-75 is a linear
amplifier to drive the piezo actuator APA 120S with the

Fig. 14 Experimental setup for

testing input force to the
microgripper
1
2

5 3
4 1. CEDRAT AMPLIFIER LC-75, LA-75

2. MVD 2555 CARRIER FREQUENCY

AMPLIFIER -HBM

3. HBM U9C FORCE SENSOR

4. APA 120S ACTUATOR

5. OPTO NCDT 1402 LASER PICK UP

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 Microsystem Technologies

gain of 20. It is a low noise, low power amplifier with three could be actively used for both static and dynamic condi-
independent channels. Two channels are been used for tions. Since the measurements are static they are best suited
right and left jaw respectively. The output of the LA75 is for the experiment.
fed to the piezoelectric actuator. To measure the force NI9264 DAQ is a 16 channel analog output voltage
which is particularly stable and insensitive to interference, DAQ used to supply voltage in the range of  10 to 10 V.
a measuring amplifier termed MVD 2555 from HBM is This analog output voltage is given to the ac to dc con-
used. MVD 2555 is a 4.8 kHz carrier frequency amplifier verter LC-75. The Linear DC voltage is then amplified by
for half and full strain guage bridges. The HBM U9C force the linear amplifier LA-75. This output is directly fed to the
transducer is connected to MVD 2555 amplifier and cali- piezoelectric stack actuators.The actuators were actuated
brated accordingly. The measured values are read over the individually and the output displacement of the stack is
LCD display. A force transducer from HBM with both recorded. On the other hand the HBM force transducer is
tensile and compressive force measuring capability is used. connected with one side fixed to the guide-way and the
HBM U9C-100 with the nominal rated force being 100 N. other end to the actuator. The guideway is locked so that
Since U9C series are strain gauge based transducers they the motion is restrained. For the given voltage input force

Fig. 15 Experimental setup to test grasping and rotational sequence of the microgripper

Fig. 16 a Initial and final grasping positions. b Initial and final rotating positions

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Microsystem Technologies

to the microgripper is recorded. The entire experimental average error of 10.33% in the measured force is observed
setup is enclosed in a box to avoid noise and interference. when compared to the FEM force analysis.
A maximum of 29.07 N force is measured on the input
side of the microgripper for the input force of 34 lm. An

Fig. 17 Plot of displacement and voltage for the left part of the microgripper

Fig. 18 Grasping sequence

performed by the microgripper
(gripping)

2.0 40
Gripping force (N)

Input force (N)

1.5 Gripping Force 30

Input Force
1.0 20

0.5 10

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140

Input Voltage (V)

250
Tip Displacement (μm)

200 Input Voltage (V)

Input Displacement (μm)

150

100

50

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140

Time (s)

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 Microsystem Technologies

Fig. 19 Rotation sequence

performed by the microgripper
(rotation)

WIRE OF DIA
250μm

RIGHT ARM
LEFT ARM

2.0 40

Wire Rotation (degrees)

Gripping force (N)

1.5 30
Gripping Force

1.0 Wire Rotation (degrees) 20

0.5 10

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140

Input Voltage (V)
140
Tip Displacement (μm)

120 Input Voltage (V)

Input Displacement (μm)

90

60

30

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140

Time (s)

6.3 Grasping and rotational sequence backlight for smooth background, (6) USB Camera with
of the microgripper manual focus adjustment, (7) linear guide-way for pre-
adjustments, (8) laser pickup OPTO NCDT 1402 for cali-
To perform the grasping and rotational sequence, the bration, (9) manual rotary focus of the camera, (10)
gripper has to be tested for its grasping and rotation piezoelectric stack actuators APA 120S and
capabilities with the integration of sensors. This section 11-microgripper.
describes in detail the experimental test setup which is Similar to the earlier explained experimental setups with
developed to test the micromanipulation (Fig. 15). some modifications, the test setup consists of microgripper
The experimental setup consists of (1) LC-75, LA-75 which is attached to two piezoelectric stack actuators using
Linear Amplifier Rack from CEDRAT TECHNOLOGIES, couplers. The distance and the fine adjustment is done
(2) NI 9264 Analog Voltage output data acquisition system using linear guide way and locking it once done to restrain
from NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS, (3) acrylic box for the movement. The setup is provided with additional flo-
enclosure of the experimental setup, (4) PC loaded with rescent tube for more luminescence. The analog output of
LabVIEW 2012 from NATIONAL INSTRUMENTSÒ, (5) NI-9264 is given to CEDRAT linear converter LC-75 and

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Microsystem Technologies

then given to the CEDRAT linear amplifier LA-75 to the microgripper which gives a displacement amplification
amplify the given signal with the gain of 20. A camera is of 10.0758 for the right jaw and 4.852 for the left jaw. FE
placed on the top of the microgripper to carry out Image analysis using ANSYS gives the displacement amplifica-
processing to detect displacement and force. Micromanip- tion as 9.698 and 4.0323 for the right and left arm
ulation could be carried out with micro objects like wire, respectively. Experiments conducted to measure displace-
foil to analyze the performance of the microgripper. ment amplification ratio ashow that the results vary by 6.15
The microgripper is first tested without any object been and 15.19% from FE and analytical results respectively.
placed between the jaws. Figure 16a shows the initial and The measured input force to the microgripper goes in well
final displaced state of the microgripper in grasping compliance with the results of the force testing carried out
sequence. Figure 16b shows the initial and final displaced on APA-120S stack actuator. To test the performance of
state of the microgripper in rotational sequence. The plot of the microgripper, micromanipulation of objects is carried
displacement and voltage for the given initial and final out. Overall it can be concluded that the goal of creating a
positions of grasping and rotational sequence is shown in development platform for researchers in micromanipula-
Fig. 17. tion is been achieved.
The LabVIEW code is designed to first allow the user to
determine the ROI. Once chosen, the calibration is carried Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the funding support
from SOLVE: The Virtual Lab @ NITK (Grant number: No.F.16-35/
out. The thicker gripper arm is taken as a reference. Within 2009-DL Ministry of Human Resources Development) (http://www.
the selected ROI, the gripper thickness is measured in solve.nitk.ac.in) and experimental facility provided by Centre for
terms of pixels and the corresponding microns per pixel System Design (CSD): A Centre of excellence at NITK, Surathkal,
value is determined. India.
The grasping sequence performed by the microgripper is
described in Fig. 18 along with the various other output
parameters. A wire of 250 lm is been used for the
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