February 10, 2020 | Manufacturing & Prototyping | Medical | Robotics, Automation & Control

“Pop-Up” Technique Fabricates Microrobots

Robotics & Automation INSIDER

Microscale icosahedron. (Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University)

A bulk-machined “Pop-Up” MEMS process was developed for creating mesoscale machines up to several centimeters in dimension.

Sheets of various laser-cut materials are layered and sandwiched together into a thin, flat plate that pops up into the complete electromechanical structure, creating complex, articulated mechanisms with potential uses in robotic research and design, and in electronic and medical applications.