Microrobotics and Millirobotics Research
Biomimetic Millisystem Lab
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Biomimetic Millisystem Lab

Microrobotics and Millirobotics Research

Our lab is interested in shrinking robots to a size range where they can exploit application domains inaccessible to conventional robots or humans. Our current focus is on flying micro-robots (the MFI project), medical milli-robots, and micro-assembly techniques which can be used to build micromechatronic systems, including microrobots. For microassembly, we interested in measuring and controlling contact forces to ensure reliable assembly operations. At the micro-scale, adhesive forces can dominate gravitational forces, and study of assembly adhesive forces has branched into study of gecko adhesion mechanisms with Prof. Kellar Autumn's lab, Prof. Robert Full's lab, and Prof. Tom Kenny's lab.

Dextrous Micromanipulation and Microassembly


We have developed a set of dextrous micromanipulation primitives for reorienting and regrasping rectangular parts. The parts can be combined to build 3 dimensional microstructures. Some examples from Shimada et al [2000] are shown here.



``Pivot'' grasp using fixture to generate moment on 75 by 100 by 400 micron part, rotating part.



Movie of automated assembly sequence (MPEG 1.48 MB). (MPEG 16 MB).
This operation is completely open-loop, resulting in accumulated alignment errors.
Stacked microparts, bonded with UV cure epoxy. 3 large base parts are 400 by 230 by 75 microns thick, top part is 80 by 80 by 430 microns.


Eiji Shimada's Microassembly page

Papers on Microassembly, etc.

(see also Desktop Rapid Prototyping Millirobots Publications and Micromechanical Flying Insect Publications )


* Apparatus and method for manipulation of an object
R.S. Fearing and E. Shimada,
US Patent 6,798,120 Sept. 28, 2004.
* Automating Microassembly with Ortho-tweezers and Force Sensing,
J.A. Thompson and R.S. Fearing,
IROS 2001, Maui, HI, Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 2001.
* Prototyping Millirobots using Dextrous Microassembly and Folding
E. Shimada, J.A. Thompson, J. Yan, R.J. Wood and R.S. Fearing,
Symposium on Microrobotics, ASME Int. Mechanical Engineering Cong. and Exp.,
DSC-Vol. 69-2, pp. 933-940, Nov. 5-10, 2000, Orlando, FL.
* Adhesive force of a single gecko foot-hair,
K. Autumn, Y. Liang, T. Hsieh, W. Zesch, W.-P. Chan, T. Kenny, R. Fearing, and R.J. Full,
Nature , vol. 405, pp. 681-685, June 8, 2000.
* Alignment of Microparts Using Force Controlled Pushing
W. Zesch and R.S. Fearing
SPIE Conf. on Microrobotics and Micromanipulation, Nov. 2-5 1998, Boston, MA, USA.
* Survey of Sticking Effects for Micro-Parts,
R.S. Fearing
IEEE Int. Conf. Robotics and Intelligent Systems IROS '95, Pittsburgh, PA August 7-9, 1995.
* A Planar Milli-Robot System on an Air Bearing
R.S. Fearing
7th Int. Symp. Robotics Research, Herrsching, Germany Oct. 1995.