The design and manufacture of a comb-driven micropump

This work presents two attempts that were made at designing and manufacturing a comb-driven micropump, with the intention of extending the capabilities of micropumps and exploring those of comb drives. The first attempt involved pairing a new type of micropump with a standard comb drive. An initial design was completed, along with some preliminary process optimization, but ultimately it was decided that standard comb drives on their own may not be the best type of actuator for micropumps. The second attempt involved pairing a new type of comb drive with a standard micropump. Again, an initial design was completed, along with some preliminary process optimization. In this case, however, more extensive research will need to be done to determine whether this type of comb drive is useful for actuating micropumps, although some of the workings of the new comb drive were able to be characterized much more thoroughly.