Locomotive characteristics of swimming mechanism propelled by alternating magnetic field

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the micro swimming mechanism propelled by the alternating magnetic field in a water pipe. Locomotive characteristics of the swimming mechanism are investigated for the purpose of the development of micro robots which work in human blood vessels. The swimming mechanism is composed of a small magnet attached to a polyethyleneterephthalate film. The dynamic behaviour of the mechanism is analyzed by a three-dimensional motion analysis system. It was found that the propelling velocity depends on the excitation frequency and dimension of the polyethyleneterephthalate film.