Contactless Suspension and Propulsion of Glass Panels by Electrostatic Forces

In the manufacture of liquid crystal display devices, there is a strong demand for contactless glass plate handling devices that can manipulate a glass plate without contaminating or damaging it. To fulfill this requirement, an electrostatic transportation device for glass plates is proposed. This device can directly drive a glass plate and simultaneously provide contactless suspension by electrostatic forces. To accomplish these two functions, a feedback control strategy and the operational principle of an electrostatic induction motor are utilized. The stator possesses electrodes which exert electrostatic forces on the glass plate and are divided into a part responsible for suspension and one for transportation. To accomplish dynamic stability and a relatively fast suspension initiation time, the structure of the electrode for suspension possesses many boundaries over which potential differences are formed. In this paper, an electrode pattern suitable for the suspension of glass plates is described, followed by the structure of the transportation device and its operational principle. Experimental results show that the glass plate has been transported with a speed of approximately 25.6 mm/s while being suspended stably at a gap length of 0.3 mm.