Novel locomotion principle for mobile micro robots

This paper presents a novel locomotion concept for mobile micro robots: the “friction drive principle”. It allows for easy miniaturization and high velocities for low power consumption and simple onboard electronics. A prototype (Ø20 mm × 7.5 mm) with two degrees of freedom (X and Y) is presented. The measured velocity (up to 2.5 mm/s) and its dependency on the actuation frequency and phase shift are compared to the simulated results of a mathematical model of the actuator.