Skip to main navigation Skip to search Skip to main content

3DFlex: A rapid prototyping approach for multi-material compliant mechanisms in millirobots

  • University of Maryland, College Park

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper describes an intuitive method for the design and fabrication of small-scale robots with multi-material compliant mechanisms in 3D. The rigid components are 3D printed, and flexures are inserted into the rigid components, creating the final mechanism. The assembled mechanisms are robust, requiring over 1 N of force to delaminate, and surviving 150,000 cycles of bending without failure. A 6 g walking quadrupedal millirobot is presented as a case study for the design and manufacturing methodology. The quadrupedal millirobot has been demonstrated moving at top speeds of 9 mm/s (0.3 body lengths/s).

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationICRA 2017 - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages3068-3073
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)9781509046331
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 21 2017
Event2017 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, ICRA 2017 - Singapore, Singapore
Duration: May 29 2017Jun 3 2017

Publication series

NameProceedings - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation
ISSN (Print)1050-4729

Conference

Conference2017 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, ICRA 2017
Country/TerritorySingapore
CitySingapore
Period05/29/1706/3/17

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of '3DFlex: A rapid prototyping approach for multi-material compliant mechanisms in millirobots'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this