Development of an automated microfactory: Part 2 - Experimentation and analysis

An automated microfactory is developed and executed for improved multi-operation manufacturing of micro/meso-scale components. In this paper, the technologies developed are implemented and quantitatively analyzed. The results of performance analysis is presented for both pallet and mMT calibration, three-axis and five-axis mMTs, fixturing methods, automated tool placement, and part registration. An assessment of the microfactory performance and capabilities with regard to part/feature accuracy, portability, and throughput is made.