Silicon three-axial tactile probe for the mechanical characterization of microgrippers

Abstract

A three-axial tactile micro probe for the investigation of the mechanical behavior of micro grippers and other micro assembly equipment has been developed using silicon micromachining technology. The sensor has been used to measure the restoring forces of flexural hinges in a micro gripper gear, to calibrate an integrated gripping force sensor, and to measure the generated forces of actuators used in micro grippers. The tactile micro probe is an advancement of a 3-D force sensor presented earlier.