micromanipulator


[DEFINITION]
mechanism to manipulate microscopic objects such as genes, cells, microcomponents, and microtools.

[DESCRIPTION]

Micromanipulators can be driven by mechanical, pneumatic, hydraulic (oil or water), electromagnetic, or piezoelectric actuators as well as by electric motors. Micromanipulators for cell manipulation generally combine two separate drives: one for fine movement and one for coarse movement. Most micromanipulators are manually controlled by visual information received through microscopes or cameras to adjust their microposition. The future development of micromanipulators with force control mechanisms is expected for assembling microscopic objects using microforce and for realizing micro-teleoperation systems.



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