The research objective of this award is to develop methods for modeling, design and control of a large number of magnetic mobile micro-robots for a given specific application. Here, micro-robots are proposed to be made of novel smart magnetic composites for remote, parallel magnetic actuation and control in two dimensions and three dimensions in small confined spaces such as inside the human body, a micro-fluidic chip, and small desktop workspaces. The research will result in methods which are general enough to apply across all magnetic micro-robotic systems and that can be exploited in diverse applications. Deliverables include a catalog of fundamental modeling, analysis, design and fabrication tools, demonstration and validation via hardware, documentation of research results, and engineering student education.
If successful, the results of this research will provide an opportunity to create new micro-robotic systems for use in health-care, microfluidic bio-devices, tissue engineering, programmable matter, and desktop micro-manufacturing applications. The results will be disseminated to allow the creation of commercial micro-robotic devices for medical, bioengineering and micro-manufacturing applications. Graduate and undergraduate engineering students will benefit through classroom instruction and involvement in the research. The research results of the project will be presented to children, K-12 students, K-12 teachers, IEEE student members, and college students through public lectures. The achievements of the project will be also exhibited in science museums for educating the public and children on micro-robotics.
