Page 22 - trends in automation

Photo: Daimler AG
A laboratory no bigger than a credit card
Microsystems play a key role in
modern medical technology and
laboratory automation. They are
becoming increasingly important in the
miniaturisation of sample quantities.
“In diagnostics we are currently
witnessing a trend for the inclusion of
a laboratory function on prefabricated
carriers,” says Jens-Heiko Adolph, Head
of ISM Electronic, Assembly, Solar,
The future belongs to microsystems engineering
Small in size, big in ability
Being small is simply not enough. Microsystems must be able to see, hear or feel, make
decisions and initiate the right processes. A big task for these small technological marvels.
W e may not be aware of it, but
our professional and daily
lives are increasingly being
controlled by microsystems.
They go quietly about their work as
“stabilisers” in computers, as an
intelligent combination of sensors,
processors and actuators in airbags
or in the form of an intelligent gripper
with miniature camera in automation.
Microsystems engineering is thus an
expanding sector of the economy, with
experts predicting double digit growth.
Microsystems engineering is providing
a new impetus in mechanical and plant
engineering, the electrical industry,
automotive engineering, information
and communications technology,
biotechnology and medical technology.
Subsystems that make their own
decisions
Microsystems engineering combines
sensors, actuators and processors to
create intelligent complete systems in
the smallest of spaces. Microsystems
engineering is therefore not just
about making components smaller,
but also about providing a proper
“training programme” for subsystems.
In microsystems engineering, an
intelligent gripper is no longer
subordinate to a PLC. It can function
independently – without the need
for an additional computer – to
identify parts, distinguish them by
size, design and quality, grip them
and forward them to different users
depending on the process type. In
addition to a lower weight and reduced
energy requirements, an intelligent
microsystems engineering gripper offers
faster response times thanks to shorter
information channels.
Small, but effective: Detonators (left)
trigger airbags like the front airbag of
the new Volvo 40 (right), which protects
pedestrians in the event of a collision.