University of British Columbia

Planar Motor Incorporated

Other

Xiaodong Lu

Irfan-Ur-Rab Usman

Peter Tang

Alexander H Slocum, Jr

Rui Chen

Graham Williamson

Yao Kevin Xiao

Kevin Xiao

Bruce Long

Alexander Slocum

Alexander H Slocum

Stator modules are disclosed. Stator modules may include: a stator body; a working surface supported relative to the stator body; and a plurality of electrical conductors, each electrical conductor of the plurality of electrical conductors extending along a respective portion of the working surface and operable to generate a magnetic field to facilitate moving, relative to the working surface, a magnetized mover in the magnetic field in response to electrical current through the electrical conductor. Robotic systems including such stator modules are also disclosed.

Stator modules and robotic systems

Various embodiments relate to magnetically moveable displacement devices or robotic devices. Particular embodiments provide systems and corresponding methods for magnetically moving multiple movable robots relative to one or more working surfaces of respective one or more work bodies, and for moving robots between the one or more work bodies via transfer devices. Robots can carry one or more objects among different locations, manipulate carried objects, and/or interact with their surroundings for particular functionality including but not limited to assembly, packaging, inspection, 3D printing, test, laboratory automation, etc. A mechanical link may be mounted on planar motion units such as said robots.

Robotic devices and methods for fabrication, use and control of same

A system is described in which a magnetic mover includes at least one mover identification device. The system also includes a stator defining a work surface and including an actuation coil assembly and at least one stator identification device operable to interact with the at least one mover identification device. One or more sensors are used to sense a position of the first magnetic mover. One or more stator driving circuits are used to drive the actuation coil assembly to thereby move the first magnetic mover over the work surface. The first magnetic mover includes one or more magnetic components positioned such that interaction of one or more magnetic fields emitted by the one or more magnetic components with one or more magnetic fields generated by the actuation coil assembly when driven by the one or more stator driving circuits enables movement of the first magnetic mover in at least two degrees of freedom.

Systems and methods for identifying a magnetic mover

Robotic assembly systems and methods of assembling products using planar robots. Planar movers cooperate magnetically with stators to pick products provided on an infeed and place them in a pattern on an outfeed system, wherein the movers having a clamp having at least two opposing clamping surfaces whose relative positions are continuously adjustable by a force from an object external to the mover and the stator. Sensors and controllers cooperate to precisely move the movers on the stator, particularly as a group, for the movers to pick respective products at respective picking locations. Some systems permit packaging of multiple products.

Robotic device and methods for fabrication, use and control of same

Displacement devices comprise a stator and a moveable stage. The stator comprises a plurality of coils shaped to provide pluralities of generally linearly elongated coil traces in one or more layers. Layers of coils may overlap in the Z-direction. The moveable stage comprises a plurality of magnet arrays. Each magnet array may comprise a plurality of magnetization segments generally linearly elongated in a corresponding direction. Each magnetization segment has a magnetization direction generally orthogonal to the direction in which it is elongated and at least two of the magnetization directions are different from one another. One or more amplifiers may be connected to selectively drive current in the coil traces and to thereby effect relative movement between the stator and the moveable stage.

Displacement devices and methods for fabrication, use and control of same

Apparatus and method estimate a position of a movable stage. The apparatus comprises: a stator comprising 2D array of sensors arranged relative to one another to provide a plurality of stator-Y oriented sensor columns and a plurality of stator-X oriented sensor rows; a movable stage comprising a first Y-magnet array comprising a plurality of first magnetization segments generally linearly elongated in a stage-Y direction, each first magnetization segment having a stage-Y direction length, L, and a magnetization direction generally orthogonal to the stage-Y direction, the magnetization directions of the plurality of first magnetization segments exhibiting a first magnetic spatial period &#x3bb;over a stage-X direction width, W, of the first magnet array; and a controller connected to receive information based on an output from each of the sensors and configured to use the information to determine a stator-X direction position of the movable stage.

Displacement devices and methods and apparatus for detecting and estimating motion associated with same

Aspects of the invention provide methods and systems for moving a plurality of moveable stages relative to a stator. The stator comprises a plurality of coils shaped to provide pluralities of coil trace groups where each coil trace group comprises a corresponding plurality of generally linearly elongated coil traces which extend across a stator tile. Each moveable stage comprises a plurality of magnet arrays. Methods and apparatus are provided for moving the moveable stages relative to the stator, where a magnet array from a first moveable stage and a magnet array from a second moveable stage both overlap a shared group of coil traces. For at least a portion of the time that the magnet arrays from the first and second moveable stages overlap the shared group of coil traces, currents are controllably driven in the shared coil trace group based on the positions of both the first and second moveable stages. The positions of the first and second moveable stages may be ascertained by feedback.

Methods and systems for controllably moving multiple moveable stages in a displacement device

Aspects of the invention provide methods and systems for moving moveable stages relative to a stator. A stator is operationally divided into multiple stator tiles. The movement of the one or more moveable stages is controlled by a plurality of controllers (each assigned particular control responsibilities). A controller is provided for each stator sector, where each stator sector comprises a group of one or more stator tiles. Controllers from neighboring sectors share various information to facilitate controllable movement of one or more moveable stages relative to the stator.

Methods and systems for controllably moving one or more moveable stages in a displacement device

A displacement device includes a stator having non-parallel stator-x and stator-y elongated traces. The device also includes a moveable stage having a first magnet array with first magnetization segments linearly elongated in a stage-x direction and having magnetization directions generally orthogonal to the stage-x direction. The first magnet array includes a first pair of adjacent first magnetization segments made up of two first magnetization segments adjacent to one another in a stage-y direction non-parallel to the stage-x direction. Each first magnetization segment in the first pair has a corresponding magnetization direction oriented at a corresponding angle &#x3b1;about a corresponding stage-x axis as measured from a positive stage-z direction that is generally orthogonal to both the stator-x and stator-y directions. The corresponding angle &#x3b1;is one of 45&#xb0;+n90&#xb0; where n is any integer. Each first magnetization segment in the first pair has a different magnetization direction.

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Xiaodong Lu