Project looks at gecko grip for handling in high-precision industrial settings

Now, a Georgia Institute of Technology (GATECH) researcher is looking into how gecko-grip could be applied in a high-precision industrial setting, such as in robot arms used in manufacturing computer chips.

"There are numerous ways that gecko adhesion could be used in an industrial setting, especially in handling delicate materials like the silicon wafers used in manufacturing computer processors," said Michael Varenberg, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's George W Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.

Before robot arms and other devices can implement gecko adhesion technology, researchers need more information about the mechanical and physical characteristics of the human-made adhesive surfaces.

In a study published in Journal of the Royal Society Interface, Varenberg looked at a particular type of gecko-inspired adhesive surface and narrowed down a range of angles at which the material will attach stronger and release its grip easier.

The gecko gets its ability through the use of tiny hairs that interact with surfaces at an intermolecular level, a process during which the tiny film-like hairs are pressed onto the surface and engaged with a shearing action. They then either hold to the surface or release when pulled away in different directions.