Presented at Actuator 2006, Bremen, Germany, June 2006
By David Henderson
A new linear piezoelectric motor is presented called the SQUIGGLE® motor. Ultrasonic vibrations in a threaded nut directly rotate and translate a threaded screw. The newest model is only 1.55 X 1.55 mm square and 6 mm long and uses less than 0.1 Watt to produce 20 grams of force at 5 mm per second. High linear force, power, precision and low cost make SQUIGGLE motors ideal for emerging micro motion applications including: mobile phone cameras, micro fluidic devices, implantable drug pumps, deformable mirrors for adaptive optics, and basic laboratory research including MRI, vacuum and cryogenics.
