Electromagnetic linear actuators with inductive position sensing

✍ Scribed by H Guckel; T Earles; J Klein; J.D Zook; T Ohnstein

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1996
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 713 KB
• Volume: 53
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0924-4247
• DOI: 10.1016/0924-4247(96)01137-5

✦ Synopsis

Magnetically driven linear micro-actuators with 1 mN output force and hundreds of microns of total travel have been realized using LIGAlike processing techniques. These devices are driven at resonance frequencies of around 350 Hz and exhibit quality factors of about 300 in air. Exploiting wire-wound electromagnets, 300 #m resonant displacements have been demonstrated with drive signal currents of about ! mA and power dissipation of less than 200/xW. In addition, the self inductance of the coils in these actuators varies linearly with plunger displacement. The inductance changes of about 1/xH #m-1 may be used for inductive position sensing and as a measure of output force.