Vacuum pad demo (SMC)

Fabruary 2012

Vacuum pad overview. Dimensions 150x150mm

Just a few pictures, and a link to a video, of a demonstration of a vacuum pad by SMC. It consists of a layer of sintered stainless steel grains, grinded to 10-15 microns flatness across the full surface, in an aluminium holder. The holder in this case is custom-made for a solar cell company.

Vacuum pad pictures & microscope images

Left: Edge detail of the vacuum pad Right: Corner detail

Above Left: Edge detail of the vacuum pad. View image to enlarge
Above Right: Corner detail of the vacuum pad. View image to enlarge
Below Left, Right: Microscope view of the pad surface. Image size is ~4x5mm (left), 1.0x1.3mm (right)

Left: magnified view of pad surface Right: magnified view of pad surface

Below: Demo video of a mechanical trial piece being sucked down onto the surface. Vacuum is switched a few times to illustrate the (lack of?) deformation in the sensor during the switching.