Reconfigurable multi-component sensors built from MEMS payloads carried by micro-robots

Field Programmable Robot Arrays (FPRAs) are micro-robots with onboard reconfigurable logic. The primary goal of the FPRAs is to build digital-logic structures by physical motion as well as electronic reconfiguration (commonly used in prior programmable logic). We extend the application of FPRAs here by presenting a sensor-based architecture with the following components: (a) Scratch-Drive-Actuator (SDA) micro-robots carrying MEMS sensor payload components and (b) onboard programmable logic arrays of a new kind called Field Programmable One-Hot Arrays (FPOHAs) which have two roles in the proposed system. First, each FPOHA is configured to act as a Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) so that each micro-robot may receive commands via a global communication channel to guide the robots´ path towards their target locations. Second, when each micro-robot reaches its target docking location, the associated FPOHA is reprogrammed to implement a control-systems algorithm that operates a payload component carried onboard the micro-robot. The docking locations are chosen so that the payload components make electrical, mechanical and/or fluidic connections, and thereby form a multi-component sensor. If a different sensor configuration is needed at a later time, the FPOHAs are reprogrammed back as UARTs, and the components may be rearranged to form a different sensor type. A variety of MEMS component types could be envisioned: micro-reactors, micro-catalysts, micro-pumps, etc. Each micro-robot would carry one such component. We assume MEMS-based micro-robots like those developed by Donald et al., with the improvement of an additional stylus arm to control left and right rotation as well as using both arms to halt.