
Robotic gripper uses acoustic levitation for contact-free manipulation - sahin-boydas
https://newatlas.com/science/robotic-manipulator-ultrasonics-acoustic-levitation-contactless-gripper/
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mreome
I think acoustic levitation is going to be a technology worth watching over
the coming years. I'm very curious what could be achieved with application
specific speakers designed/built _as_ arrays as opposed to discrete stock
speakers assembled into arrays. It could end up being like comparing a matrix
of discrete 5mm LEDs to an LED monitor in terms of precision/accuracy and open
up a lot of possible applications.

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lachlan-sneff
You mean, like arrays of microscale acoustic generators? Maybe if the
wavelength was small enough, one could manipulate singular molecules with
nanometer precision? 3Ghz ultrasound at sea level has a wavelength of about
150 nm.

Perhaps the endgame of this would be a phased array that can generate phonons
with extreme accuracy.

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traverseda
I mean remember that the way these things work is by manipulating air
molecules. Manipulating single-molecules is going to be difficult since you're
always going to be at the mercy of your carrier fluid/gas.

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jv22222
Here's a fascinating video that explains Acoustic Levitation and shows it in
action with various materials:

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odJxJRAxdFU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odJxJRAxdFU)

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jbay808
If they can manipulate multiple objects at a time, this could really speed up
PCB pick-and-place operations.

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pudsbuds
Does the actual soundwave itself have an effect on these parts? They mentioned
something about a thin layer of lubricant. Wouldn't soundwaves also mess with
this layer as well?

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jstarfish
It shouldn't; fluid is an insulator and the lubricant has enough (viscosity?
tensile strength? I'm not a materials guy) to adhere to the part in question.
The soundwaves must be super high-frequency so they should just get absorbed
without displacement.

I'd be curious to see if something like this could succesfully handle an Etch-
a-Sketch or Magna-Doodle without ruining the picture though.

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marvin
Does anyone know what limits the real-time calculation of these fields?

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beamatronic
Can you theoretically levitate a car with this?

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tomcam
I’d like to suggest purchasing a lift from Harbor Freight...

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dfsegoat
...their 3T jack really is a phenomenal deal.

[https://www.harborfreight.com/3-Ton-Heavy-Duty-Rapid-Pump-
Fl...](https://www.harborfreight.com/3-Ton-Heavy-Duty-Rapid-Pump-Floor-
Jack-64260.html)

~~~
serf
>a phenomenal deal.

eh. i've gone through 4 of them. I only keep buying them when theyre heavily
discounted. They begin leaking down quickly, and parts aren't readily
available to repair the cylinder, so you're stuck measuring and finding
everything yourself -- a feat not worth the price of the product.

i'd have saved money by now if I had just bought something nice and
rebuildable.

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bdcravens
"Acoustic Levitation"

Found the name of my band

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adrianmonk
It's going to be awkward playing only songs with suspended chords.

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flareback
That's pretty amazing.

