Modeling and Control of an Untethered Magnetic Gripper

Small-scale robots have great potential in minimally invasive surgery (MIS). In this paper, we propose an untethered magnetic gripper with small scale and build a double-magnet model for it. The gripper is 4.3mm long and its maximum width is 4mm. It contains a spindle and two magnets, which can achieve precise control of orientation, position and open angle with external magnetic driven field. As a result, it can perform operations such as transporting medicines in confined and constrained environments. Modeling and analysis of the magnetic gripper have been carried out. Relationship between the open angle and external magnetic field has been established. Kinematics model of the gripper has been built. A 3-axis Helmholtz-Maxwell coil system has been established to generate the magnetic field, in which orientation and open angle can be controlled with uniform magnetic field while position can be controlled with gradient field. The proposed gripper have been validated with phantom experiments. An opened angle control error of 0.63° and direction control error of 1.1° have been obtained.