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Bio-hybrid tactile sensor and experimental set-up for investigating and mimicking the human sense of touch
Cheneler, D., Buselli, E, Oddo, C. M., Kaklamani, G., Beccai, L, Carrozza, M. C., Grover, L., Anthony, C., Ward, M. C. L. and Adams, M., (2012), Bio-hybrid tactile sensor and experimental set-up for investigating and mimicking the human sense of touch, Proceedings of HRI2012, Boston, USA, 3rd March 2012
In this paper, we describe the design and fabrication of a bio-hybrid tactile sensor and experimental platform. The... more In this paper, we describe the design and fabrication of a bio-hybrid tactile sensor and experimental platform. The system uses tissue engineered alginate encapsulated fibroblasts and a conductivity sensor as a transduction system to monitor applied normal and tangential loads in a manner comparable to mechanotransduction in the human haptic system in nonglabrous skin. The tissue is integrated into a microfluidic system interfaced with a nanoporous membrane capable of sustaining the viability of the cells for extended times. The efficacy of the bio-hybrid tactile sensor is validated using a 2 DoF Cartesian manipulator, capable of indenting and sliding textured stimuli over the device. Also, the platform includes a two-cell Peltier-based temperature controlled control module. This allows the evaluation of the effect of temperature variation on the bio-hybrid sensor response, and to decouple the effect of temperature from mechanical stimulation.
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Download (.pdf) Direct e-beam lithography of PDMS
Bowen, J. Cheneler, D. and Robinson, A. P. G., (2012), Microelectronic Engineering, In Press
In this paper, the viability of directly exposing thin films of liquid poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) to electron beam... more
In this paper, the viability of directly exposing thin films of liquid poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) to electron beam (e-beam) irradiation using e-beam lithographic methods for the purpose of
creating permanent micro-scale components has been investigated. By exposing a 1.1 μm thickness PDMS films to doses in the range 10-50,000 μC/cm2, it was discovered that the structure of the resultant film exhibits four distinct phases, depending upon the exposure dose. These phases were manifest in both the resultant Young's modulus and thickness of the developed film. It was found that there is a critical dose whereupon the resultant film undergoes solidification and adheres to the countersurface sufficiently to survive the development process. It has been shown that the Young's modulus of the solid film can be varied over seven orders of magnitude, from that of a viscoelastic material through a rubbery regime to that of a glassy one, by increasing the e-beam dose. At higher doses, excessive backscattering was observed, as well as film swelling, resulting in poor spatial resolution.
An Investigation of a Research Project Innovative Seating Systems
Published in "IEEE", Dec 2011.
IEEE, BME5:1569506127 P486-491
This paper presents an investigation of a research project titled "Innovative Seating Systems" by BMW Group... more This paper presents an investigation of a research project titled "Innovative Seating Systems" by BMW Group "Research and Technology" Team. It is based on my idea and reports about "Benefits of using Bionic Seats in Roadster cars" which is submitted and accepted by BMW Group Co-Creation Lab in March 2010. In this paper, three BMW Group revolutionary innovative seating systems, Bionic Seat, Ergo Seat and Formfitting seat Space Comfort Shell will be investigated in terms of comfort and safety. They will be studied and examined by various virtual applications to visualize their reactions and finally be judged. These three conceptual seats will be utilized and tested by current massaging systems, Active and Passive Safety options as well. Moreover, whiplash effect during rear impact and its occurrence probability would be calculated. - This work is done under BMW Group Research and Innovation Centre.
(Poster) Can MEMS Accelerometers be used to Directly Monitor Relative Fracture Movement?
Junaid, S; Cheneler, D; Ghaffari, S; Hukins, D W; Anthony, C J; Shepherd, D., ORS2012
Currently the fracture or limb lengthening of any long bone is monitored using pain measures, radiographs and limb... more
Currently the fracture or limb lengthening of any long bone is monitored using pain measures, radiographs and limb weight bearing. All these qualitative measures are inaccurate; radiographs provide little information of the fracture site due to un-calcified callus tissue. Excessive fracture movement (1 mm+ [1]) can lead to delayed healing (up to 7 weeks longer [2]) and mal-alignment (up to 19% of cases, [3]). However, if removed too early, there is a real risk of re-fracture due to insufficient callus stiffness (up to 8 % of cases, [4]). Furthermore, there has been some speculation as to whether mal-aligned tibia can lead to the development of osteoarthritis due to load changes in the knee. Ideally, identifying excessive movement of the fracture early can allow the fracture to be easily manipulated by adjusting the fixator.
An accurate method of quantitatively measuring fracture movement in vivo is needed to address this problem. The aim of this study is to investigate whether MEMS accelerometers can be used to accurately monitor movement directly in an externally fixed tibia fracture in vitro.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S
A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how... more A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how complexity of Finite element (FE) models of the tyre can affect the simulation behaviour with respect to accurate prediction of real tyre behaviour. Three FE models, so called “simple”, “regular” and “complex” were developed for this investigation so that the accuracy of results obtained from the models for different types of analysis can be determined in comparison with measured test data. For all the simulations carried out, including tyre burst test and tyre inflation, a hyperelastic material property was assumed for modelling rubber and cord materials, using the Yeoh model [1]. Simulations were performed using Abaqus/CAE for two dimensional (2D) analysis and Abaqus command line partly for three dimensional (3D) simulation of tyre inflation. Physical tests were carried out on two tyres for FE model validation in terms of tyre burst test and profile sizing measurements. The results showed excellent accuracy in terms of deformation in FE models by comparison with real size measurements of tyre profiles. Also, a quite good prediction of tyre burst pressure under high inflation was obtained for the different models. Finally, the investigation showed that while maximum stress in cords and maximum deflection of tyres at the rated inflation pressure were fairly insensitive to varying the mesh size in the FE models, maximum stress in the rubber components was particularly sensitive to such mesh size variation.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S
A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how... more A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how complexity of Finite element (FE) models of the tyre can affect the simulation behaviour with respect to accurate prediction of real tyre behaviour. Three FE models, so called “simple”, “regular” and “complex” were developed for this investigation so that the accuracy of results obtained from the models for different types of analysis can be determined in comparison with measured test data. For all the simulations carried out, including tyre burst test and tyre inflation, a hyperelastic material property was assumed for modelling rubber and cord materials, using the Yeoh model [1]. Simulations were performed using Abaqus/CAE for two dimensional (2D) analysis and Abaqus command line partly for three dimensional (3D) simulation of tyre inflation. Physical tests were carried out on two tyres for FE model validation in terms of tyre burst test and profile sizing measurements. The results showed excellent accuracy in terms of deformation in FE models by comparison with real size measurements of tyre profiles. Also, a quite good prediction of tyre burst pressure under high inflation was obtained for the different models. Finally, the investigation showed that while maximum stress in cords and maximum deflection of tyres at the rated inflation pressure were fairly insensitive to varying the mesh size in the FE models, maximum stress in the rubber components was particularly sensitive to such mesh size variation.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S
A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how... more A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how complexity of Finite element (FE) models of the tyre can affect the simulation behaviour with respect to accurate prediction of real tyre behaviour. Three FE models, so called “simple”, “regular” and “complex” were developed for this investigation so that the accuracy of results obtained from the models for different types of analysis can be determined in comparison with measured test data. For all the simulations carried out, including tyre burst test and tyre inflation, a hyperelastic material property was assumed for modelling rubber and cord materials, using the Yeoh model [1]. Simulations were performed using Abaqus/CAE for two dimensional (2D) analysis and Abaqus command line partly for three dimensional (3D) simulation of tyre inflation. Physical tests were carried out on two tyres for FE model validation in terms of tyre burst test and profile sizing measurements. The results showed excellent accuracy in terms of deformation in FE models by comparison with real size measurements of tyre profiles. Also, a quite good prediction of tyre burst pressure under high inflation was obtained for the different models. Finally, the investigation showed that while maximum stress in cords and maximum deflection of tyres at the rated inflation pressure were fairly insensitive to varying the mesh size in the FE models, maximum stress in the rubber components was particularly sensitive to such mesh size variation.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S
A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how... more A brief study on the complexity of the structure of aircraft tyres is presented. The main goal is to investigate how complexity of Finite element (FE) models of the tyre can affect the simulation behaviour with respect to accurate prediction of real tyre behaviour. Three FE models, so called “simple”, “regular” and “complex” were developed for this investigation so that the accuracy of results obtained from the models for different types of analysis can be determined in comparison with measured test data. For all the simulations carried out, including tyre burst test and tyre inflation, a hyperelastic material property was assumed for modelling rubber and cord materials, using the Yeoh model [1]. Simulations were performed using Abaqus/CAE for two dimensional (2D) analysis and Abaqus command line partly for three dimensional (3D) simulation of tyre inflation. Physical tests were carried out on two tyres for FE model validation in terms of tyre burst test and profile sizing measurements. The results showed excellent accuracy in terms of deformation in FE models by comparison with real size measurements of tyre profiles. Also, a quite good prediction of tyre burst pressure under high inflation was obtained for the different models. Finally, the investigation showed that while maximum stress in cords and maximum deflection of tyres at the rated inflation pressure were fairly insensitive to varying the mesh size in the FE models, maximum stress in the rubber components was particularly sensitive to such mesh size variation.
Application of Colloid Probe Atomic Force Microscopy to the Adhesion of Thin Films of Viscous and Viscoelastic Silicone Fluids
Langmuir
James Bowen, David Cheneler, James W. Andrews, Andrew R. Avery, Zhibing Zhang, Michael C. L. Ward, and Michael J. Adams
The adhesive characteristics of thin films (0.2–2 μm) of linear poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) liquids with a wide... more The adhesive characteristics of thin films (0.2–2 μm) of linear poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) liquids with a wide range of molecular weights have been measured using an atomic force microscope with a colloid probe (diameters 5 and 12 μm) for different separation velocities. The data were consistent with a residual film in the contact region having a thickness of 6 nm following an extended dwell time before separation of the probe. It was possible to estimate the maximum adhesive force as a function of the capillary number, Ca, by applying existing theoretical models based on capillary interactions and viscous flow except at large values of Ca in the case of viscoelastic fluids, for which it was necessary to develop a nonlinear viscoelastic model. The compliance of the atomic force microscope colloid beam was an important factor in governing the retraction velocity of the probe and therefore the value of the adhesive force, but the inertia of the beam and viscoelastic stress overshoot effects were not significant in the range of separation velocities investigated.
Principles of a MSFR for the Analysis of Extremely Small Volumes of Liquid
Cheneler, D., Bowen, J., Ward, M. C. L. and Adams, M. J., (2011), Principles of a MSFR for the Analysis of Extremely Small Volumes of Liquid, J. Micromech. and Microeng., Vol. 21, pp. 1-14, 045030
In this paper, the analysis and design of a piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze flow rheometer (MSFR) is... more In this paper, the analysis and design of a piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze flow rheometer (MSFR) is presented. The fabrication of a simple prototype is described and initial experiments show the validity of the theory presented. The rheometer requires small volumes of liquid of the order of 1–10 nL and extends the frequency range an order of magnitude beyond that possible using conventional cone and plate rheometry. The electrodes of the piezoelectric disc which are used to actuate the rheometer have been patterned to allow the simultaneous measurement of the induced voltage, the phase and amplitude of which is then used to calculate the storage and loss moduli of the fluid being tested.
Smart Pipes – Instrumented Water Pipes, Can this be Made a Reality?
Metje N., Chapman D., Cheneler D., Ward M. and Thomas A., (2011), Smart Pipes – Instrumented Water Pipes, Can this be Made a Reality?, Sensors, Vol. 11, pp. 7455-7475
Several millions of kilometres of pipes and cables are buried beneath our streets in the UK. As they are not visible... more Several millions of kilometres of pipes and cables are buried beneath our streets in the UK. As they are not visible and easily accessible, the monitoring of their integrity as well as the quality of their contents is a challenge. Any information of these properties aids the utility owners in their planning and management of their maintenance regime. Traditionally, expensive and very localised sensors are used to provide irregular measurements of these properties. In order to have a complete picture of the utility network, cheaper sensors need to be investigated which would allow large numbers of small sensors to be incorporated into (or near to) the pipe leading to so-called smart pipes. This paper focuses on a novel trial where a short section of a prototype smart pipe was buried using mainly off-the-shelf sensors and communication elements. The challenges of such a burial are presented together with the limitations of the sensor system. Results from the sensors were obtained during and after burial indicating that off-the-shelf sensors can be used in a smart pipes system although further refinements are necessary in order to miniaturise these sensors. The key challenges identified were the powering of these sensors and the communication of the data to the operator using a range of different methods.
Fabrication and Analysis of Cylindrical Resin AFM Microcantilevers
In this paper a new method of fabricating cylindrical resin microcantilevers using the Direct Digital Manufacturing... more
In this paper a new method of fabricating cylindrical resin microcantilevers using the Direct Digital Manufacturing (DDM) technique of Micro-stereolithography (MSL) is described. The method is rapid and commercially viable, allowing the fabrication of atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers
which exhibit much larger spring constants than those currently commercial available. This allows for experimentation in a force regime orders of magnitude higher than currently possible using the AFM. This makes these cantilevers ideally suited for AFM-based depth sensing indentation. Due to their geometry, the assumptions used in the standard Euler-Bernoulli beam theory usually used to analyse AFM cantilevers may no longer be valid. Therefore approximate analytical solutions based on Timoshenko beam theory have been derived for the stiffness and resonant frequency of these cantilevers. Prototypes of the cantilevers have been fabricated and tested. Results show good
agreement between experiment and theory.
Effect of focused ion beam milling on microcantilever loss
Anthony, C. J., Torricelli, G., Prewett, P. D., Cheneler, D., Binns, C. and Sabouri, A., (2011), Effect of focused ion beam milling on microcantilever loss, J. Micromech. and Microeng., Vol. 21, pp. 1-7, 045031
Micro-scale cantilevers such as those used in the Atomic Force Microscope are now being applied to the accurate... more Micro-scale cantilevers such as those used in the Atomic Force Microscope are now being applied to the accurate measurement of novel forces such as the Casimir force. The measurements are done in dynamic mode and higher sensitivity can be achieved by using cantilevers with lower force constants. One method to produce a low force constant cantilever is to reduce the thickness of a conventional AFM cantilever by focused ion beam milling. Here we show that this method leads to a typical reduction of the quality factor by 40-50%, relating to an increase in the damping coefficient in the region of 100%, negating any improvement from the lower force constant. In the measurements reported here no trend in the damping coefficient change has been observed with either dose rate of the milling or with the total mill depth.
Characteristics and durability of fluoropolymer thin films
Polymer Degradation and Stability
Authors: David Cheneler, James Bowen, Stephen D. Evans, Marcin Górzny, Mike Adams, Mike Ward
The use of plasma-polymerised fluoropolymer (CFxOy) thin films in the manufacture of microelectromechanical systems... more The use of plasma-polymerised fluoropolymer (CFxOy) thin films in the manufacture of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices is well-established, being employed in the passivation step of the deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) process, for example. This paper presents an investigation of the effect of exposure to organic and aqueous liquid media on plasma polymerised CFxOy thin films. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), ellipsometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and dynamic wetting measurements were all employed as characterisation techniques. Highly basic aqueous solutions, including known silicon etchants, were found to cause delamination via degradation of the countersurface below the CFxOy thin film. Films were found to be stable in organic solvents, acidic aqueous solutions and slightly basic aqueous solutions.
Micro squeeze flow rheometer for high frequency analysis of nano-litre volumes of viscoelastic fluid
Microelectronics Engineering
Authors: David Cheneler, James Bowen, Mike Ward, Mike Adams
In this paper, the design, fabrication and experimental analysis of a
piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze... more
In this paper, the design, fabrication and experimental analysis of a
piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze flow rheometer is presented. Being only
30x30x0.5 mm in size, the micro rheometer is sensitive to very small volumes of
the order of 1-10 nano-litre of liquid and light enough to operate at frequencies in
the kHz regime, an order of magnitude higher than normally attainable with
conventional cone and plate rheometry. Initial experiments show that the response
of the rheometer is dependent on the viscoelasticity of the fluid being tested. The
prototype was used to measure the moduli of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) of
viscosity 10 Pa s, a non-volatile viscoelastic fluid, over the frequency range of 10-
1000 Hz. Results show good agreement between with the moduli measured using
conventional rheometry up to 100 Hz and with values extrapolated up to 1 kHz.
(poster) Micro Squeeze Flow Rheometer for High Frequency Analysis of Nano-litre Volumes of Viscoelastic Fluid
MNE 2010, 36th International Conference on Micro and Nano Engineering
Authors: David Cheneler, James Bowen, Mike Adams, Mike Ward
The design, fabrication and experimental analysis of a piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze flow rheometer (MSFR)... more The design, fabrication and experimental analysis of a piezoelectrically actuated micro squeeze flow rheometer (MSFR) is presented. The design improves upon existing technology such as the Micro Fourier Rheometer and others by having the advantage of being very small in size in comparison. This makes it sensitive to very small (nano-litre) volumes of liquid and light enough to operate at frequencies an order of magnitude higher than normally attainable with conventional cone and plate rheometry. Its size and the method of fabrication used also makes it very cheap to produce allowing it to be operated in parallel with a large array of similar devices. This will greatly facilitate high throughput screening of large numbers of small volumes of fluid, which is highly desirable within the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. It also makes it possible to integrate the rheometer into lab-on-a-chip devices or use it for BioMEMS applications.