University of Michigan

Nobuyuki Futai

Shuichi Takayama

Gary Daniel Smith

Brenda S Cho

Xiaoyue Zhu

Wei Gu

Yunseok Heo

Microfluidic devices having active features such as valves, peristaltic pumps, and mixing portions are fabricated to have a thin elastomeric membrane over the active features. The active features are activated by a tactile actuator external to the membrane, for example, a commercial Braille display. The display may be computer controlled, for example by simple text editor software, to activate individual Braille protrusions or a plurality of protrusions to actuate the active portions of the microfluidic device. Integral devices can incorporate the tactile actuators in a single device, but still external to the membrane.

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Ann Arbor, MI, United States of America

Nobuyuki Futai