MEMS-Based Active Control
of Macro Scale Objects
Contract DABT63-95-C-0025
Principal Investigator: Andrew A.
Berlin
Animations
Program Overview
The goal of this program is to develop and demonstrate techniques that
enable distributed, MEMS-based arrays of sensors, actuators, and computational
elements embedded within materials and on surfaces to enhance and control
the behavior of macro-scale systems. We are pursuing system-level
research that includes the development of software and architectures for
coordinating the actions of large numbers of distributed devices.
We are also developing milli-scale hardware components and manufacturing
methods to bring MEMS-style batch fabrication to bear on macro-scale objects.
We will demonstrate our work through a series of technical demonstrations
that address the closely-related applications of active structural enhancement
and precision motion control.
Click here to see animations
of the demonstration prototypes in operation.
Contributing Researchers
| Andrew A. Berlin* |
David K. Biegelsen |
Geoff Chase* |
| Patrick Cheung* |
Mark H. Yim* |
Warren Jackson |
| Markus Fromherz |
Tad Hogg |
Feng Zhao* |
| Rachel Lau* |
Natalya Cohen*+ |
Srinivas Bhashyam*+ |
| Eric Mao+ |
John Gilbert |
Bob Street |
| Bryan Preas |
|
|
* Funded in part by DARPA
+ Summer interns
Portions of this research are performed in collaboration with Sarcos
Research Corporation
Introduction
Imagine how different the world would be if miniaturized sensors, actuators,
and computers could be embedded within materials, coated on surfaces, and
spread throughout the environment, essentially making matter programmable.
Fundamental properties such as shape, stiffness, color, reflectivity of
light and sound, and even load-bearing strength could be dynamically adjusted
on demand. Clouds of smart dust could be programmed to sense ground traffic
patterns or hazardous atmospheric conditions, or even to display information.
We believe that a set of emerging technologies, such as MEMS,
which integrate sensing, actuation, and computation, will revolutionize
the way that people build products in the 21st century by coupling
computation to the physical world on a scale that has never before been
possible.
We are pursuing a novel synthesis of technologies that seeks to merge
information systems with diverse technologies from the fields of MEMS,
active structural control, smart materials, and distributed communication
to create intelligent surfaces, particles, and materials that can sense,
reason about, and interact with their environment.
Work on "Smart Matter" is inherently multi-disciplinary, and this is
reflected in the way that PARC
has approached this work. An interdisciplinary team of scientists from
multiple PARC laboratories is working
closely together to pursue a broad theme of research that includes the
development of novel types of sensors, actuators, and batch-fabrication
processes, as well as the development of paradigms for combining these
components to form systems.
This program focuses on addressing the system-level issues of Smart
Matter, including research on distributed control strategies, system architectures,
models of highly embedded computation, languages for control of massively
parallel distributed systems, novel ways to use and/or combine devices
and fabrication processes, and the development of hardware and software
prototypes that enable exploration of these issues.
Selected Research Accomplishments
Some of the program's research accomplishments include:
-
mEMS: Novel fabrication techniques that merge Printed-Circuit board fabrication
technology with MEMS technology to create a larger-scale of batch-fabrication
technology that we call mEMS (milli-scale Electro-Mechanical Systems).
A prototype array of several hundred fluid
valves has been constructed using the process.
-
Multi-modal distributed control strategies for active structural enhancement.
-
Demonstration test articles consisting of actively
stabilized beams and columns that are capable of adjusting their load-bearing
strength and stiffness.
-
A Smart Matter-driven object mover that uses
distributed sensing and arrays of airjets to move and precisely position
paper.
-
The ISAT
Study on Distributed Information Systems for MEMS. This study examines
the long-term potential of MEMS/Smart Matter technology to couple computation
to the physical world, and documents some of the opportunities for information
systems research.
-
Simulation environments, distributed control strategies, mathematical theorems
to support controller development, tools for analyzing and predicting the
operating range of actively controlled dynamical systems, interconnection
and programming strategies for modular micro-robotics, theories about control
of quantum-scale smart matter, and control toolkits.
Related Links
Smart Matter at Xerox
PARC
Xerox Parc's Computation and Matter Area
The DARPA MEMS Program
Publications
Berlin, A. and Gabriel, K., “Distributed MEMS: New Challenges for Computation,
IEEE Computational Science and Engineering Magazine, Jan-Mar 1997.
Berlin, Chase, and Yim, “Active Control of Structural Buckling Instability:
Practical Tradeoffs and Design Considerations”, in preparation.
Biegelsen, Jackson, Berlin, and Cheung, “Air Jet Arrays for Precision
Positional Control of Flexible Media”, International Conference on Micromechatronics
for Information And Precision Equipment (MIPE'97), July 20-23, 1997, Tokyo
Breneman, S., Chase, J.G., and Smith, A., “Robust and LTI H-infinity
Static Output Feedback Design for Systems with Limited Actuator Authority”,
American Control Conference, Albuquerque, NM., 1997.
Chase, Yim, Berlin, Jacobsen, Olivier, Maclean, "MEMS-based control
of structural dynamic instability" ASME Congress presentation and
publication, November 16-21 Dallas, TX
Chase, Yim, Berlin, "Integrated centering control for inertially actuated
systems", submitted for publication.
Chase and Bhashyam, "Optimal stabilization of plate buckling", submitted
for publication.
Chase and Bhashyam, "Optimal stabilization of indefinite plate buckling
problems", submitted for publication.
Chase, J.G. and Yim, M., “Optimal Stabilization of Column Buckling”,
submitted for publication.
Cheung, P., Berlin, A., Biegelsen, D., Jackson, W., “Batch Fabrication
of Pneumatic Valve Arrays by Combining MEMS with Printed Circuit Board
Technology”, to appear in the proceedings of the Symposium on Micro-Mechanical
Systems, ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exhibition,
Dallas, TX, Nov. 16-21.
Yim, Chase, and Berlin, "Inertial Stabilization of Buckling", submitted
for publication
Yim and Mao, "Rhombic Dodecahedron Shape for Self-Assembling
Robots", submitted for publication.
Funding Acknowledgment
The project or effort depicted is sponsored in part by the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency under contract DABT630095C-025. The content
of the information does not necessarily reflect the position or the policy
of the Government and no official endorsement should be inferred.
last modified June 26, 1998
