Novel Electrothermal Microgrippers Based on a Rotary Actuator System

Abstract

Microgrippers are devices that have found applications in various fields of research and industry. They are driven by various actuation methods. In this article, an electrothermal rotary actuator recently proposed in the literature is explored to obtain a novel microgripper design (Model 1). In addition, the use of the rotary actuator as part of the chevron actuated microgrippers (Model 2) is also discussed. The theoretical analysis of the rotary actuator is supported by an equivalent U-shaped-like microactuator. The small error values validate the approximation used. Numerical modeling is performed with ANSYSTM (Student version 2022, ANSYS, PA, USA). A comparison of theoretical and numerical results provides acceptable error values. The total inter-jaw displacement values obtained for models 1 and 2 are 12.28 μm and 21.2 μm, respectively, and the reaction force is 8.96 μN and 34.2 μN, respectively. The performance parameters of both microgrippers could make their use feasible for different nanoapplications. Model 2 can be used when higher force and displacement are required.