CFD ANALYSIS OF AN INNOVATIVE VACUUM MICRO-GRIPPER

A new type of vacuum microgripper is considered. An automatic release device inserted in the gripper body allows to overcome adhesion forces that can prevent detachment of the object to be handled. A CFD analysis of a simplified model of the device is presented. The goal is to evaluate the lifting force on the release device as a function of geometric parameters, an important information for design of this class of microgrippers. A reference geometry has been firstly investigated using a high-fidelity approach, i.e. a Large Eddy Simulation. The results have been used to validate a cheaper CFD approach based on the RANS solution. Then through steady RANS computations a dataset has been obtained varying geometric parameters of the device. Trends of the lifting force in terms of geometry modification are presented and discussed. All calculations have been performed with OpenFOAM®.