Microelectromechanical rotary structures
First Claim
1. A microelectromechanical rotary structure comprising:
- a microelectronic substrate;
a hub disposed upon a surface of said microelectronic substrate, said hub defining a central axis extending therethrough; and
at least two hub spoke members extending outwardly from said hub, wherein each of the at least two hub spokes has an imaginary center line extending through at least a portion of said hub spoke member that is displaced from the central axis of said hub, and wherein said at least two hub spoke members are operably adapted to impose a rotational force upon said hub in response to changes in temperature that provide for thermophysical motion of said at least two hub spoke members.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
MEMS (Microelectromechanical System) structures are provided that are designed to rotate in response to thermal actuation or the like. In one embodiment, the MEMS rotary structure includes a hub having one or more radial spoke members that impose a rotational force upon the hub in response to applied changes in temperature. The MEMS rotary structure can also include a ring at least partially encircling the hub and connected to the hub by means of one or more hub spoke members. Controllable clockwise, counterclockwise, or both clockwise and counterclockwise rotation of the hub or ring are provided. The MEMS rotary structures can also include thermal arched beam actuators that are operably connected to the spoke member. As the temperature changes, the thermal arched beam actuators move the spoke members in order to rotate the MEMS structure. Various applications are provided for these rotating MEMS structures, including but not limited to rotary actuators, rotary switches and relays, variable capacitors, variable resistors, shutters, and valves.
105 Citations
35 Claims
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1. A microelectromechanical rotary structure comprising:
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a microelectronic substrate; a hub disposed upon a surface of said microelectronic substrate, said hub defining a central axis extending therethrough; and at least two hub spoke members extending outwardly from said hub, wherein each of the at least two hub spokes has an imaginary center line extending through at least a portion of said hub spoke member that is displaced from the central axis of said hub, and wherein said at least two hub spoke members are operably adapted to impose a rotational force upon said hub in response to changes in temperature that provide for thermophysical motion of said at least two hub spoke members. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A microelectromechanical rotary structure comprising:
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a microelectronic substrate; a hub disposed upon a surface of said microelectronic substrate; a ring disposed above the surface of said microelectronic substrate and at least partially encircling said hub; and at least one hub spoke member that connects said ring and said hub, wherein said at least one hub spoke member is operably adapted to impose a rotational force upon said hub and said ring by changing in length in response to changes in temperature. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A microelectromechanical rotary structure comprising:
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a microelectronic substrate; a hub disposed on a surface of said microelectronic substrate; at least one hub spoke member extending outwardly from said hub and spaced from the surface of said microelectronic substrate; and at least one microelectromechanical actuator disposed on the surface of said microelectronic substrate and operably connected to a respective hub spoke member so as to controllably move said respective hub spoke member in response to thermal actuation, said at least one microelectromechanical actuator comprising; at least two anchor members disposed on the surface of said microelectronic substrate; and at least one arched beam extending between said at least two anchor members, wherein said at least one arched beam is operably connected to said respective hub spoke member, and wherein said at least one arched beam is adapted to further arch in response to thermal actuation so as to move said respective hub spoke member, thereby imposing a rotational force upon said hub. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35)
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Specification