MICRO-ACTUATOR VALVE EMPLOYING SHAPE-MEMORY ALLOY FILM

BY COMBINING SILICON MICROMACHINING TECHNIQUES WITH SHAPE-MEMORY ALLOY IN THE FORM OF SPUTTERED FILMS, IT IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE COMPACT FORCEFUL MICRO-ACTUATORS. SUCH DEVICES ARE USEFUL IN VALVES AND PUMPS FOR IMPLANTABLE DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEMS AND, IN COMBINATION WITH MICROSENSORS, IN MINIATURE ROBOTS AND PORTABLE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS SYSTEMS. MINIATURE MEDICAL ROBOTS UNDER DEVELOPMENT IN RESEARCH LABORATORIES CANNOT BE REALIZED WITHOUT THE DEVELOPMENT OF MICRO-VALVES. CENTIMETER-SIZED VALVES USING ELECTRICALLY-POWERED SHAPE-MEMORY FILM HAVE BEEN FABRICATED IN OUR LABORATORY. THESE DEVICES CAN BE GREATLY SCALED DOWN FROM THEIR PRESENT STATE OF DEVELOPMENT. MEDICAL MINIMALLY-INVASIVE ROBOTIC SYSTEMS REQUIRE CREATION OF DEVICES IN THE SIZE RANGE OF ONE HUNDRED MICRONS TO ONE MILLIMETER. IN PHASE I WE WILL DESIGN A VALVE, BASED ON OUR WORK TO DATE, FOR USE IN MINIATURE PNEUMATIC-POWERED ROBOTS, AND FABRICATE AND TEST MICRO-VALVE COMPONENTS. IN PHASE II, WE WILL CONSTRUCT WORKING PROTOTYPES INCLUDING INTEGRATED MULTIPLE-VALVE SYSTEMS FOR MEDICAL MICRO-ROBOTS. RESEARCH PROPOSED HEREIN WILL LEAD TO MICRO-VALVES FOR USE IN A VARIETY OF MICRO-ELECTRO- MECHANICAL SYSTEMS. ANTICIPATED BENEFITS/POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS - MICRO-ELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS WILL HAVE COMMERCIAL APPLICABILITY IN INDUSTRY, AEROSPACE, MEDICINE AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING BECAUSE THEY WILL INCREASE PORTABILITY OF EQUIPMENT, ENABLE COST-EFFECTIVE MEDICAL TECHNIQUES, AND FACILITATE ANALYSES OF MICR-LITER SAMPLES.