A mechanical flip-flop actuator has been developed that allows for the facile re-routing and distribution of liquid marbles (LMs) in digital microfluidic devices. Shaped loosely like a triangle, the actuating switch pivots from one bistable position to another, being actuated by the very low mass and momentum of a LM rolling under gravity (~4 × 10−6 kg ms−1). The actuator was laser-cut from cast acrylic, held on a PTFE coated pivot, and used a PTFE washer. Due to the rocking motion of the switch, sequential LMs are distributed along different channels, allowing for sequential LMs to traverse parallel paths. This distributing effect can be easily cascaded, for example to evenly divide sequential LMs down four different paths. This lightweight, cheap and versatile actuator has been demonstrated in the design and construction of a LM-operated mechanical multiplication device — establishing its effectiveness. The actuator can be operated solely by gravity, giving it potential use in point-of-care devices in low resource areas.
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机译：已经开发出一种机械式触发器致动器，它允许在数字微流体设备中方便地重新路由和分配液体弹珠（LM）。致动开关的形状像三角形，从一个双稳态位置枢转到另一个位置，由在重力作用下滚动的LM极低的质量和动量致动（〜4×10 −6 kg ms −1 ）。该执行器由铸造丙烯酸树脂激光切割而成，固定在PTFE涂层的枢轴上，并使用PTFE垫圈。由于开关的摇摆运动，顺序LM沿着不同的通道分布，从而允许顺序LM穿越平行路径。这种分布效果可以轻松地级联，例如将连续的LM均匀地划分为四个不同的路径。这种轻巧，便宜且用途广泛的执行器已在LM操纵的机械倍增装置的设计和构造中得到了证明-证明了其有效性。该执行器只能靠重力来操作，使其有可能在资源贫乏地区的即时医疗设备中使用。
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