Development of a Piezo-Driven Liquid Jet Dispenser with Hinge-Lever Amplification Mechanism

Micromachines (Basel). 2020 Jan 21;11(2):117. doi: 10.3390/mi11020117.

Abstract

Owing to the quick response, compact structure, high precision, huge blocking force generation, and ease of operation, piezoelectric actuators are urgently being adopted in the field of advanced dispensing for jetting performance improvement and fulfillment of precision requirements in microelectronics packaging, adhesive bonding, and miniaturization industry. This research focuses on the fundamental design and development of a piezo-electrically driven compact fluid dispenser using the principle of a class-one lever for amplification of needle displacement, and enhancement of application areas of the developed jet dispenser. Using fundamental lever principle, geometry-based modelling is carried out to fabricate a working prototype of a normally closed hinge-lever type dispenser. Preliminary experiments are carried out to witness the workability of the fabricated dispenser to deliver 100 dots of working fluid per second that will provide a novel device for dispensing of various fluids, and the proposed amplification mechanism suits various other piezoelectric applications as well.

Keywords: dispenser; displacement amplification; droplet; hinge-lever; jetting; needle-type; normally-closed; nozzle.