Abstract: A method for the design, manufacture, and assembly of modular lattice structures composed of cuboctahedron unit cells.

Abstract: The invention comprises a novel modular, generalizable meso-micro-nano-fluidic platform apparatus, design and methodology which in exemplary embodiments may be applied in conjunction with a novel external triggering and automation/feedback loop control mechanism deployed via computer to explore the phase space of single or double emulsification for applications including the encapsulation of hydrophilic active pharmacological ingredients (APIs). End use applications include the mass production of particulate encapsulation of hydrophobic or hydrophilic APIs with automatic or user-supervised feedback methodology to control and discover mass production or per-drug customized settings of interest for the manufacture of novel or extant therapeutics.

Abstract: An outer skin of a metamaterial is provided that includes a tessellation of folded structures. This outer skin integrates the mechanical needs of movable structures with one process, which better replicates nature's engineering strategies. The tessellation of folded structures may be discretely assembled and may include an offset arrangement of corrugations. In certain embodiments, the metamaterial may be a portion of a continuum robotic structure.

Abstract: A method for removing organic or inorganic micropollutants from aqueous solutions includes adding a biomass of biomaterial to the solutions, the biomaterial being an active or inactive biological organism, such as a yeast, having affinity for biosorption (adsorption by the biomass)of an organic or inorganic micropollutant present in the solution at, or below, a parts-per-billion concentration, and controlling the pH and temperature of the solution, as well as contact time and agitation, to be within a range suitable for biosorption of the at micropollutant by the biomaterial. The amount of biomass added to the solution may be calculated according to the amount of solution, the concentration of the micropollutant in the solution, and the total amount of the micropollutant that can be biosorbed by a particular quantity of the inactive or active biomaterial. In a preferred embodiment, the biomaterial is obtained from Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Abstract: A method of forming a structural honeycomb includes cutting and folding a substrate sheet according to predetermined cutting and folding patterns and fold angles that cause the sheet to form a honeycomb having cells that each have at least one face abutting, or nearly abutting, the face of another cell. The honeycomb is then stabilized by joining abutting, or nearly abutting, faces to hold the honeycomb together. The honeycomb may have a prespecified three-dimensional shape. The folding pattern may include corrugation, canted corrugation, or zig-zag folds. Joining may employ fixed and/or reversible joinery, including slotted cross section, tabbed strip, angled strip, integral skin, sewn, or laced. At least some folds may be partially-closed to create bends and twists in the honeycomb structure. Some surfaces of the honeycomb may be covered with a skin or face sheet. The substrate sheet may have flexible electronic traces.

Abstract: A system of flexural, actuating, and semiconducting elements of part-types necessary to assemble actuated robotic systems. These parts are joined with a common interface, interlocking with neighboring parts to form a regular lattice structure. Primary considerations for the design of the part interfaces include ease of assembly and the ability to transfer mechanical loads and electronic signals to neighboring parts. The parts are designed to be assembled vertically so structures can he built incrementally one part at a time. They can be easily fabricated at a range of length-scales using a variety of two-dimensional manufacturing processes. These processes include, for example, stamping and laminating, which enable high-throughput production. The simple mechanical interfaces between parts also enable disassembly allowing for reconfigurability and reuse. The interlocking nature of these assemblies allows loads to be distributed through many parallel load-paths.

Abstract: A micro-electromechanical (MEM) relay and its fabrication process. The MEM relay includes a movable actuator electrode anchored to a substrate with two cantilever beams. Below the actuator electrode, there are three fixed electrodes. These three electrodes are the gate, the input, and the output contacts. The square base of the actuator electrode, and the square gate electrode below it, form an electrostatic parallel-plate actuator. When a voltage is applied between the actuator electrode and the gate electrode, the actuator electrode is pulled-down due to electrostatic attraction closing the relay. When the voltage is removed, the cantilever beams act as springs opening the relay.

Abstract: A method for the design, manufacture, and assembly of modular lattice structures composed of cuboctahedron unit cells.

Abstract: A method of forming a structural honeycomb includes cutting and folding a substrate sheet according to predetermined cutting and folding patterns and fold angles that cause the sheet to form a honeycomb having cells that each have at least one face abutting, or nearly abutting, the face of another cell. The honeycomb is then stabilized by joining abutting, or nearly abutting, faces to hold the honeycomb together. The honeycomb may have a prespecified three-dimensional shape. The folding pattern may include corrugation, canted corrugation, or zig-zag folds. Joining may employ fixed and/or reversible joinery, including slotted cross section, tabbed strip, angled strip, integral skin, sewn, or laced. At least some folds may be partially-closed to create bends and twists in the honeycomb structure. Some surfaces of the honeycomb may be covered with a skin or face sheet. The substrate sheet may have flexible electronic traces.

Abstract: A trans-disciplinary system for cell-free biosynthesis includes a cell-free transcription-translation (TX-TL) tool and modular, generalizable microfluidic architectures. Both components of the system are independently functional and are combinable into a cell-free biosynthesis platform. In the first component, modular plasmid libraries are used to program bacterial cell-free TX-TL systems. Each plasmid holds one gene or operon, and all the genes are controlled by the same promoter, so that the stoichiometry of enzyme synthesis is determined by the stoichiometry of plasmids in the reaction. In the second part, in order to facilitate high throughput mixing and matching of gene units from the modular plasmid libraries, a modular, reconfigurable, flexible, and scalable microfluidic architecture is employed.

Abstract: Magnetic load cells that measure force and/or torque are constructed from magnets and one or more arrays of magnetic field sensors. The magnetic field sensors are structured in a tight array where the array is attached to a first portion of a frame. The magnets are operated in pairs polarized in opposition to one-another. In particular, pairs of concentric magnets create sharp field boundaries. The magnets are attached to a second portion of the frame with the magnets separated from the array of field sensors by a small gap. The second portion of the frame is free to displace or rotate in relation to the first portion of the frame when a force or torque is applied to it. The displacement results in a measurable differential change in magnetic field reported by the array that can be sampled and processed to relate to the applied force or torque.

Abstract: A method for fabricating MAS NMR rotors and drive caps made of diamond to increase the maximum achievable spinning frequency and enhance MAS NMR sensitivity and resolution. Diamond is an excellent choice for making MAS NMR rotors due to its high tensile and flexural strength, however, micromachining diamond is difficult due to its hardness. Although laser cutting is often employed to cut diamond sheets, this process cannot be used to create the high aspect ratio and small features required for MAS NMR rotors. In the present invention, a laser micromachining process is used to create the desired high aspect ratio while maintaining the small lateral features. In this process, the laser is used to first convert the diamond into graphite followed by a conversion to carbon dioxide in the presence of oxygen. To create a rotor, a rectangular log has a center hole drilled by the laser, and is then micromachined into a hollow cylinder.

Abstract: A micro-electromechanical (MEM) relay and its fabrication process. The MEM relay includes a movable actuator electrode anchored to a substrate with two cantilever beams. Below the actuator electrode, there are three fixed electrodes. These three electrodes are the gate, the input, and the output contacts. The square base of the actuator electrode, and the square gate electrode below it, form an electrostatic parallel-plate actuator. When a voltage is applied between the actuator electrode and the gate electrode, the actuator electrode is pulled-down due to electrostatic attraction closing the relay. When the voltage is removed, the cantilever beams act as springs opening the relay.

Abstract: A class of robots specifically adapted to climb periodic lattices. These “relative robots” are designed for a specific lattice structure and use the regularity of the structure to simplify path planning, align with minimal feedback, and reduce the number of degrees of freedom (DOF) required to locomote. These robots can perform vital inspection and repair tasks within the structure that larger truss construction robots cannot perform without modifying the structure. A particular embodiment is a robot designed to traverse a cubooctahedral (CubOct) cellular solids lattice using only two motions: climbing and turning.

Abstract: A method of producing inductive sensors, including LVDTs and inductive encoders, manufactured by plotting fine wire onto a planar substrate. A sensor is constructed using a computer-controlled machine to place wire onto a planar adhesive substrate. This substrate forms a predictable and uniform surface to deposit each turn of wire, and so the placement accuracy is considerably better than conventional coil winding. This planar substrate can then be manipulated into a desired three-dimensional shape (e.g., by folding, rolling, corrugating, winding, etc.), carrying the wire along with it. In particular, the same CNC machine used to place the wire can be used to cut, crease, score, or otherwise pattern the substrate to facilitate the three-dimensional arrangement.

Abstract: A method and system of curved crease foldcores as energy absorbers with rule lines can that lie parallel in the flat state. Corrugated sheet is bonded to the foldcore material such that the corrugations align with the ruling. The curved creases are then cut from the corrugated layer. The image of the corrugation lines under the folding motion remains a line, and the corrugated structure survives and reinforces the folding mechanism. The corrugation significantly increases the second area moment of inertia about the crushing direction, while leaving the second area moment of inertia about the perpendicular direction largely unchanged. Under compressive failure, the corrugated foldcore fails progressively, rather than catastrophically. Also, the corrugations enforce the curved crease pattern, allowing the required curved panels to be bent while disallowing other deformations.

Abstract: Flexural digital materials are discrete parts that can be assembled into a lattice structure to produce an actuatable structure capable of coordinated reversible spatially-distributed deformation. The structure comprises a set of discrete flexural digital material units assembled according to a lattice geometry, with a majority of the discrete units being connected, or adapted to be connected, to at least two other units according to the geometry. In response to certain types of loading of the structure, a coordinated reversible spatially-distributed deformation of at least part of the structure occurs. The deformation of the structure is due to the shape or material composition of the discrete units, the configuration of connections between the units, and/or the configuration of the lattice geometry. Exemplary types of such actuatable structures include airplane wing sections and robotic leg structures.

Abstract: A shape-morphing ultralight structure using materials that dramatically increase the efficiency of load-bearing aerostructures that includes a programmable material system applied as a large-scale, ultralight, and conformable (shape-morphing) aeroelastic structure. The use of a modular, lattice-based, ultralight material results in stiffness and density typical of an elastomer. This, combined with a building block-based manufacturing and configuration strategy, enables the rapid realization of new adaptive structures and mechanisms. The heterogeneous design with programmable anisotropy allows for enhanced elastic and global shape deformation in response to external loading, making it useful for tuned fluid-structure interaction. The present invention demonstrates an example application experiment using two building block types for the primary structure of a 4.27 m wingspan aircraft with spatially programed elastic shape morphing to increase aerodynamic efficiency.

Abstract: A set of machines and related systems build structures by the additive assembly of discrete parts. These digital material assemblies constrain the constituent parts to a discrete set of possible positions and orientations. In doing so, the structures exhibit many of the properties inherent in digital communication such as error correction, fault tolerance and allow the assembly of precise structures with comparatively imprecise tools. Assembly of discrete cellular lattices by a Modular Isotropic Lattice Extruder System (MILES) is implemented by pulling strings of lattice elements through a forming die that enforces geometry constraints that lock the elements into a rigid structure that can then be pushed against and extruded out of the die as an assembled, loadbearing structure.

Abstract: A machine that is capable of assembling a copy of itself from a feedstock of parts is described. The machine operates on a lattice or grid on which it is able to move and from which it receives power and control signals. The machine (assembler) is composed of modules that each perform some functionality. In the simplest case, only three module types are needed: a linear step module, a gripper, and an anchor. The linear step module is capable of moving from one lattice location to the next, the gripper module is capable of gripping other modules, and the anchor module is capable of attaching the machine to the grid. With these three primitives it is possible for this simple machine to move on the grid using inchworm-like motions, pick up other modules, and assemble a copy of itself.