A low-cost automated micromanipulator

Abstract

The automated micromanipulator, a device widely used in the life sciences, allows precise three-dimensional positioning of tools and equipment with resolutions at or well below one micrometer, providing cellular-level movement resolution in a highly-controlled manner. The cost of a state-of-the- art electromechanical micromanipulator can be upwards of ten thousand dollars for a complete system, and can be a major, if not limiting, expense for labs, startups, and even hobbyists in these fields. The objective of this project is to build a proof-of-concept micromanipulation device that provides similar levels of performance, but at a price in the range of several hundred dollars. We intend to achieve this by utilizing equipment made recently and inexpensively available at low-costs because of the hobbyist 3D-printing market, as well as advances in piezoelectrics and imaging technologies from the last five years. By accomplishing this, the barrier of entry for work requiring sub-micron measurement will be lowered significantly.