DocumentCode :
2341357
Title :
Water strider robots with microfabricated hydrophobic legs
Author :
Suzuki, Kenji ; Takanobu, Hideaki ; Noya, Kota ; Koike, Hiroyuki ; Miura, Hirofumi
Author_Institution :
Kogakuin Univ., Tokyo
fYear :
2007
fDate :
Oct. 29 2007-Nov. 2 2007
Firstpage :
590
Lastpage :
595
Abstract :
This paper discusses biomimetic water strider robots that have microfabricated hydrophobic legs. Various kinds of supporting legs with hydrophobic microstructures on their surfaces were developed using MEMS (micro electromechanical systems) techniques. The lift and pull-off forces of these supporting legs were analyzed theoretically and then measured. The experimental results were in good agreement with the calculations. Two different mechanisms for autonomous water strider robots were developed. One robot with twelve microfabricated legs driven by a vibration motor successfully moved on a water surface and also made left/right turns by exploiting differences in the resonant frequencies of the legs. The other robot, with six microstructured legs, moved on water through elliptical motion of its middle legs, which is similar to the motion of actual water striders.
Keywords :
legged locomotion; micromechanical devices; MEMS; micro electromechanical systems; microfabricated hydrophobic legs; vibration motor; water strider robots; Biomimetics; Electromechanical systems; Force measurement; Leg; Legged locomotion; Micromechanical devices; Micromotors; Microstructure; Resonant frequency; Robots;
fLanguage :
English
Publisher :
ieee
Conference_Titel :
Intelligent Robots and Systems, 2007. IROS 2007. IEEE/RSJ International Conference on
Conference_Location :
San Diego, CA
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-0912-9
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-0912-9
Type :
conf
DOI :
10.1109/IROS.2007.4399460
Filename :
4399460
Link To Document :
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