Design and Development of a Spherical Motor for Conformal Printing of Curved Electronics

This paper presents the concept of a spherical-motor-based motion platform (SMP) for providing high-performance nozzle-substrate negotiation in conformal printing of curved electronics. Unlike conventional motion systems using serial/parallel mechanisms for multi-DOF rotations, a ball-joint-like spherical motor for providing continuous 3-DOF rotations in one joint is designed to meet the special needs of the conformal printing process. Both the kinematic and dynamic models of the SMP are presented for fitting into the conformal printing process. Specifically, the performance of a spherical motor has been evaluated, which shows better negotiation capability of the SMP than traditional motion systems. The experimental test results performed on a prototype spherical motor have validated the design concept.