Blogs


Mechatronics Meets Miniaturization

Mechatronics Meets Miniaturization

Article published in Design World – by David Henderson and Lisa Schaertl – Here’s what happened in a multi-year collaboration among engineers and scientists at New Scale Technologies, austriamicrosystems (now ams) and TDK-EPC to simultaneously develop the motor, mechanics, electronics and control systems for the M3 micro-mechatronics module.

Low Power Piezo Motion

Low Power Piezo Motion

Article in Design News – Dramatic reductions in voltage and power requirements are making tiny piezo motors and drive systems an interesting option for portable, low-power medical devices. By eliminating the need for the high voltage normally associated with piezo systems, a new piezo motor design from New Scale Technologies enables miniature motion systems that operate on a single 3-V battery without using voltage boost circuits.

Piezo motor based medical devices

Article published in Medical Design Technology – This article reviews several solutions in which piezo motor technology is enhancing the capabilities of medical devices. We include a discussion of micro- and nano-fluidic pumps, implantable devices and surgical robots.

Piezo Motor for Ultra-Thin Auto Focus Cameras

Technical paper presented at Actuator 2008, By David Henderson, Qin Xu and Danielle Piazza, New Scale Technologies. This paper describes the use of the SQUIGGLE motor in AFOZ modules, and presents the company’s newer UTAF motor for ultra-thin autofocus cameras.

Power Packed – Piezoelectric motors: big power, small package

Power Packed – Piezoelectric motors: big power, small package

Article in MICROmanufacturing Magazine by Bill Kennedy, Contributing Editor – An excellent introduction to piezoelectric motors. This article presents a background explanation of the piezoelectric effect and its use in several different motor designs, including New Scale’s direct linear drive SQUIGGLE motor as well as MicroMo’s Piezo Wave and Piezo Legs configurations.

Design miniaturisierter Produkte mit piezoelektrischen Motoren

Article in Elektronik Magazin – The combination of small size, low power use and high precision makes the SQUIGGLE motor interesting for applications including mobile phone cameras, electronic locks and latches, medical devices such as endoscope optics and drug pumps, and microfluidic devices including fuel cells and lab-on-a-chip devices. This article describes the operating principle, electrical integration, and applications of SQUIGGLE motors.

Piezoelectric motors move miniaturization forward

Article in Electronic Products magazine – This article compares piezo motors to other motor technologies for micro cameras, including miniature electromagnetic motors, voice coil actuators, liquid lenses, and piezo bimorph actuators. It then compares two types of piezo motors that have been commercialized for micro camera applications.

Micro moves

Article from Machine Design Magazine – by David Henderson. Motors that can precisely position loads with micrometer-scale accuracy are now inexpensive enough for consumer electronics.