Dr. Dan Popa

Associate Professor, University of Texas at Arlington
Head of Next Generation Systems Research Group
Department of Electrical Engineering

Friday, December 2, 2011, at 3:00 PM
Warnock Engineering Building, Room 2250
Reception to follow at 4:00 PM

Seminar Abstract

During the last decade, we have abstracted a micromanufacturing methodology combining design for automated assembly, design for reliability, and advanced assembly and packaging processes at the micro scale. This research aims to create a systematic approach to micromanufacturing that guarantees high yield as well as reliable operation for the resulting microsystems. Parts of the methodology have been demonstrated in manufacturing of microsystems such as micro-fuze packaging and gas chemical sensors. In past work, two microrobotic systems, the “M3″ and the “μ3″, have been configured to carry out automated micro- assembly tasks with MEMS parts between 10μm and 1mm in size. We used these robotic cells to validate the concept of “Lean Robotic Micromanufacturing (LRM)” as a methodology that ensures 99%+ assembly yields. LRM includes workspace configuration rules, a quantitative assemblability criterion (High Yield Assembly Condition – H.Y.A.C.), and a Complexity Index (C.I.) for making control and planning decisions. We present results aimed at using LRM tools and methods to configure the “N3″, a next generation microrobotic systems at the wafer-scale.

About Dr. Popa

Dan Popa is an Associate Professor with the Electrical Engineering Department at The University of Texas at Arlington, and head of the Next Generation Systems research group. Dr. Popa was a founding member of the Texas Microfactory Initiative at the Automation & Robotics Research Institute at UT Arlington. Dr. Popa has a broad experience base, including the modeling, simulation, and control of microsystems, and the design of multiscale robotic assembly and packaging architectures. Dr. Popa is the recipient of several prestigious awards as a member of IEEE and ASME, and is the author of over 100 refereed publications. He also serves as associate editor for the IEEE Transaction on Automation Science and Engineering, Springer Journal of Micro and Nano Mechatronics, and is an active member in the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Committee on Micro-Nano Robotics, and the ASME Committee on Micro-Nano Systems.

***The Department of Mechanical Engineering hosts a series every Fall and Spring semester featuring distinguished speakers in their related fields. Speakers come from all over the country from many different schools and industries to talk about their ground-breaking research and to show faculty and students their work. Some speakers have even been invited from other countries. A reception follows each seminar.