3D-Printed Adaptive Microgripper Driven by Thin-Film NiTi Actuators

Creating microscale actuated mechanisms in 3D space is extremely challenging due to limitations in microfabri- cation processes. In this work, we present a 3D-printed adaptive microgripper that is driven by thin-film NiTi microactua- tors with 3D-printed linkage mechanisms. The microgripper’s fingers are passively adaptive so that the microgripper can provide conformal gripping on 3D objects. The microgripper can move its fingers by 225 μm and apply a blocking force of 30 μN per one finger when 20 mA was applied to the NiTi actuators. The microgripper was also integrated onto a printed circuit board with a current regulating circuit and a 9 V battery. Since the NiTi actuator requires a low voltage for actuation, the microgripper could be integrated with simple and affordable electronics. The fully integrated microgripper system was demonstrated playing with a shape sorting box at the microscale for the first time.