Development of a MEMS Proportional Pneumatic Valve

Abstract

The MEMS proportional pneumatic valve employs an array of micro-orifices paired with piezobender micro-actuators in parallel to achieve macro-flow rates. This design produces a miniature valve that is extremely fast, lightweight, compact, and efficient. This thesis describes the design, fabrication, and testing of a MEMS valve prototype. The prototype was able to achieve a maximum flow of 0.107 slpm at 0 V and a minimum flow of 0.038 slpm at 30 V, making the turndown ratio about 2.8 at a pressure of 0.69 bar. Operation requires very little power, and the entire valve is about the size of a dime. These findings signify a step forward on the path to employing these valves in fluid power systems, especially mobile applications, but also reveal the potential of this technology to improve upon these results.