{"id":10063,"date":"2016-09-18T07:44:01","date_gmt":"2016-09-18T07:44:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/revoscience.com\/en\/?p=10063"},"modified":"2016-09-18T07:44:01","modified_gmt":"2016-09-18T07:44:01","slug":"baker-institute-offers-science-and-technology-policy-recommendations-for-next-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/baker-institute-offers-science-and-technology-policy-recommendations-for-next-president\/","title":{"rendered":"Advanced nano-cutter boosts emerging materials research at UW\u2013Madison"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Professor<\/a>
Professor Sangkee Min explains the ROBONANO, the first machine of its kind in North America. The machine\u2019s nano precision could open up improved and novel approaches to the manufacturing of everything from semiconductors to mobile devices to scientific instruments. STEPHANIE PRECOURT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Wisconsin\u2013Madison\u00a0College of Engineering<\/span><\/a>\u00a0is the new home of a unique machine capable of milling in three dimensions with nanometer precision.<\/span><\/p>\n

The machine, called the\u00a0ROBONANO \u03b1-0iB<\/span><\/a>, is the first of its kind in North America, and offers the sort of advanced technological capabilities that represent the future of advanced manufacturing.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ROBONANO is on a multiyear loan from the Japanese robotics manufacturer FANUC to the laboratory of\u00a0Sangkee Min<\/span><\/a>, a\u00a0UW\u2013Madison professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and\u00a0the\u00a0Grainger Institute for Engineering<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0The ROBONANO\u2019s capabilities offer Min and colleagues new research opportunities, which he hopes will lead to improved approaches to the manufacturing of everything from semiconductors to toys and mobile devices to scientific instruments.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The ROBONANO\u2019s extremely advanced technological capabilities could represent the future of advanced manufacturing. STEPHANIE PRECOURT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 5-axis machine has nearly limitless configurations for cutting, scribing and milling materials, but ROBONANO\u2019s superiority over previous generations of similar machines is obvious: Its ability to cut at the nanoscale is two orders of magnitude more precise than most machines used in advanced manufacturing today.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMany materials have different properties at the nanoscale that create all sorts of different possibilities that aren\u2019t possible with conventional machines,\u201d says Min.<\/span><\/p>\n

He will explore ROBONANO\u2019s suitability for manufacturing emerging materials \u2014 as well as available materials like synthetic sapphire, a promising shatter-proof alternative to glass for screens on devices such as tablets and smartphones.<\/span><\/p>\n

Made from heating aluminum oxide to extremely high temperatures, synthetic sapphire is difficult to manufacture at large scales because it is very brittle and difficult to handle. However, Min\u2019s initial research on synthetic sapphire with the ROBONANO in Japan showed that the material can be far more pliable when handled at the nano level.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The ROBONANO, which is on a multi-year loan from the Japanese robotics manufacturer FANUC, is housed in Sangkee Min\u2019s laboratory at UW\u2013Madison. The ROBONANO\u2019s ability to cut at the nanoscale is two orders of magnitude more precise than most machines used in advanced manufacturing today. STEPHANIE PRECOURT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Min also hopes to explore how machining on the nano scale can open new possibilities for manufacturing design. Most designers are constrained by manufacturing limitations that can choke creativity and slow innovation. Min points to smartphone design as a prime example of this \u201cdesign for manufacturing\u201d paradigm leading to stale product lines.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe design of the Apple iPhone has not changed very much since from the first one to the latest iPhone that was just announced,\u201d Min says. \u201cIt\u2019s the same for a lot of products. Vehicles are the same. A Ford looks like a Ford.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s because manufacturers have long-term investments in supply chains that are difficult and costly to change. Min\u2019s research with the ROBONANO will identify ways to speed up the process and flip the manufacturing paradigm \u2014 manufacturing for design.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI want to be able to ask the manufacturer, \u2018what is your perfect design?\u2019 and be able to provide that,\u201d says Min, who has already helped a national laboratory vastly improve the imaging capabilities of a microscopic instrument it manufactures.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ROBONANO has been used for 10 years in Japan by the semiconductor industry \u2014 one industry among many Min believes can benefit from the instrument\u2019s capabilities. He has been approached by the toymaker Lego and other well-known brands to discuss new fabrication approaches.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe opportunities are almost limitless for improving products and manufacturing processes with this machine,\u201d Min says.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The machine, called the ROBONANO \u03b1-0iB, is the first of its kind in North America, and offers the sort of advanced technological capabilities that represent the future of advanced manufacturing.<\/p>\n

The ROBONANO is on a multiyear loan from the Japanese robotics manufacturer FANUC to the laboratory of Sangkee Min, a UW\u2013Madison professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Grainger Institute for Engineering. The ROBONANO\u2019s capabilities offer Min and colleagues new research opportunities, which he hopes will lead to improved approaches to the manufacturing of everything from semiconductors to toys and mobile devices to scientific instruments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":10064,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10063","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-techbiz"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"ultp_layout_landscape_large":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"ultp_layout_landscape":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"ultp_layout_portrait":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"ultp_layout_square":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"newspaper-x-single-post":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"newspaper-x-recent-post-big":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"newspaper-x-recent-post-list-image":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",95,63,false],"web-stories-poster-portrait":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",448,299,false],"web-stories-publisher-logo":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",96,64,false],"web-stories-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/SangkeeMin-FANUC-Photo1-775x517.jpg",150,100,false]},"author_info":{"info":["Amrita Tuladhar"]},"category_info":"Tech<\/a>","tag_info":"Tech","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10063","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10063"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10063\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10064"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10063"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10063"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10063"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}