GENOMICON

Which I find quite interesting because it uses a mechanism not a million miles away from bristlebots… basically a thread, the holder of which buzzes at a frequency that causes the thread to screw. Never underestimate somebody else’s daft idea.

According to the website, this allows

– No parasitic drag – less wasted power
– Zero backlash (with a light pre-load)
– Very high stiffness
– Nanometer resolution and high force
– Smooth velocity at microscopic speeds
– Off-power hold
– Very small diameter
– Manual screw rotation for off-power positioning
– Standard linear motors feature direct linear drive – no gearbox

Which is pretty cool – unfortunately they bleat on about “patents” at every available opportunity which more or less morally obliges the rest of the world to reverse-engineer it.

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