Microrobots for nanomanipulation

Microrobots from the company Imina Technologies are revolutionizing the manipulation of tiny components/elements under the microscope. The EPFL spin-off is now going to the American market. The mobile microrobots developed by Imina Technologies, a spin-off from the Laboratory of Robotics Systems, are preparing to invade the American market. They enable the replacement of the fixed manipulation systems traditionally used to grab, touch or direct samples observed under a microscope. No bigger than poker dice, they can perform very precise tasks up to 10 times faster than at present. The user moves them around an object using a joystick or a computer keyboard. The robots move by micro-jumps (several thousand per second), invisible to the naked eye, that are generated by piezo-electric motors.