TUNABLE SPECTRUM SENSING DEVICE, OUT-OF-PLANE MOTION MOTOR AND PRODUCING METHOD THEREOF

The present invention provides a tunable spectrum sensing device. The tunable spectrum sensing device includes: a device body; an out-of-plane motion motor mounted on the device body and including: a base having a normal direction; and a single-axis actuator having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction, and including: a substrate with an electronic element; and an actuating end driven by the electronic element; a first glass mounted on and moved by the actuating end; and a second glass mounted on the device body. The out-of-plane motion motor can keep an object at a specific rotation angle, position the object at a specific out-of-plane displacement or be programmed for the object to perform a specific scan trajectory motion. The out-of-plane motion motor also has a large motion stroke, and thus, there is no need to use multiple tunable spectrum sensing devices to satisfy the spectral bandwidth requirement.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an out-of-plane motion motor, and more particularly to a tunable spectrum sensing device including the out-of-plane motion motor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Actuators can be classified by vibration state into the resonant type and the non-resonant type. The resonant type actuators have large rotational strokes and are driven by vertical comb structures. However, the resonant type actuators are not able to position an object at a certain angle and this is the reason why they always move in a route symmetric to a zero-bias position. In order to generate enough torque to rotate the object, the driving structures usually occupy several times the size of the object, and result in increased costs accordingly. Tunable spectrum sensing devices usually use the non-resonant type piezoelectric actuators with a very small stroke at the level of several hundred nanometers. Taking a tunable Fabry-Perot as an example, the small stroke actuator makes it difficult for the tunable Fabry-Perot to meet the spectral bandwidth required for many applications, and therefore multiple Fabry-Perots must be arranged in a group or in an array to satisfy the spectral bandwidth requirement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention discloses a tunable spectrum sensing device including an out-of-plane motion motor that overcomes the drawback in prior art. The out-of-plane motion motor can keep an object at a specific rotation angle, position the object at a specific out-of-plane displacement or be programmed for the object to perform a specific scan trajectory motion. The out-of-plane motion motor also has a large motion stroke, and thus there is no need to use multiple tunable spectrum sensing devices to satisfy the spectral bandwidth requirement.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a tunable spectrum sensing device is provided. The tunable spectrum sensing device includes: a device body; an out-of-plane motion motor mounted on the device body and including: a base having a normal direction; a sensor disposed on the base; and a single-axis actuator having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction, fixed on the base and including: a substrate with an electronic element; and an actuating end connected to the substrate and driven by the electronic element; a first glass mounted on and moved by the actuating end; and a second glass mounted on the device body.

In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, an out-of-plane motion motor for carrying an object is provided. The out-of-plane motion motor includes: a base having a normal direction; and a single-axis motion motor having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction, fixed on the base and including a single-axis actuator carrying and moving the object.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method for producing an out-of-plane motion motor for carrying an object is provided. The method includes the following steps: providing a base having a normal direction; providing a single-axis motion motor having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction and including a single-axis actuator; and fixing the single-axis motion motor on the base so that the single-axis actuator carries and moves the object.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention will now be described more specifically with reference to the following embodiments. It is to be noted that the following descriptions of the preferred embodiments of this invention are presented herein for the purposes of illustration and description only; they are not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise form disclosed.

Please refer toFIG. 1andFIG. 2, whereinFIG. 1is a top view of an out-of-plane motion motor of an embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 2is a sectional schematic diagram of a cut view of the out-of-plane motion motor along the section line A-A′ inFIG. 1.FIG. 1andFIG. 2show that a first single-axis motion motor7045-1and a second single-axis motion motor7045-2configure on a base plate surface852of a base plate851of the out-of-plane motion motor7040. As a mechanism that can produce a planar motion, a motion direction of an actuating end855of a single-axis actuator854is substantially parallel to a normal direction of the base plate surface852. The normal direction forFIG. 1is a direction that perpendicular to the drawing surface, and the normal direction forFIG. 2is an upward direction. A carried object5000′ is carried on the actuating end855of a single-axis actuator854in the single-axis motion motor7045-1, wherein the carried object5000′ can be a reflector, a reflecting mirror, a lens, a semi-reflecting mirror, etc. Because of the high-speed response performance of a micro-electromechanical system, the carried object5000′ of the present invention can also be a vibrating membrane. According to the configuring positions of the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2, the carried object5000′ can not only be moved upwards and downwards in parallel, but also can be rolled. Therefore, the carried object5000′ can have more displacement in the out-of-plane direction caused by the single-axis motion motors7045-1and7045-2of the present invention. In addition, because there is usually no need for other structures underneath the carried object5000′ to support the carried object5000′, a redundant space852′ is formed between the carried object5000′ and the base plate surface852, where the electronic element6009can be configured therein to save the overall equipment space. In addition, in order to facilitate the handling of the out-of-plane motion motor7040, a base plate frame853is formed on the periphery of the base plate851substantially parallel to the direction of the normal line of the base plate surface852. That is, the periphery of the base plate851is thickened to facilitate the handling by a robotic arm (figure not shown).

Please refer toFIG. 3andFIG. 4, whereinFIG. 3is a top view of the out-of-plane motion motor according to another embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 4is a three dimensional diagram of the out-of-plane motion motor shown inFIG. 3. It can be seen inFIG. 3andFIG. 4that two single-axis motion motors7045-1and7045-2are no longer only configured on both sides on the base plate surface852, but additional single-axis motion motors are further cooperatively configured on the four corners on the base plate surface852, which include a first single-axis motion motor7045-1, a second single-axis motion motor7045-2, a third single-axis motion motor7045-3and a fourth single-axis motion motor7045-4, and these four single-axis motion motors form the out-of-plane motion motor7040according to another embodiment of the present invention. Therefore, in the embodiment shown inFIG. 3andFIG. 4, the carried object5000′ can not only be moved upwards and downwards and parallel to the normal direction of the base plate surface852, but also have pitching motion by synchronously controlling the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2and/or synchronously controlling the third single-axis motion motor7045-3and the fourth single-axis motion motor7045-4, and thus the carried object5000′ totally has three degrees-of-freedom. Specifically, the four single-axis motion motors can be controlled to generate different displacements respectively, so that the carried object5000′ can have translational, rolled and pitched motions. The number and the configuring positions of the single-axis actuators inFIG. 3andFIG. 4are not absolute, and can be altered according to actual demands. For example, because three points can form a plane, in theory, only three single-axis actuators are needed to achieve three degrees-of-freedom movements, i.e. translation of up-and-down and rotations of roll and pitch.

Please refer toFIG. 5, which is a schematic diagram of a single-axis actuator according to one embodiment of the present invention. A detailed structure of the single-axis actuator854is showed inFIG. 5. The single-axis actuator854mainly includes a movable electrode structure500and fixed electrode structures including a first fixed electrode structure300and a second fixed electrode structure610. The movable electrode structure500has a keel510and comb fingers520fixed on the keel510, and the first fixed electrode structure300has comb fingers320fixed on a supporting arm1200. A sensing capacitor600including the second fixed electrode structure610and the movable electrode structure500is formed for sensing a capacitance value therebetween, and a distance between the movable electrode structure500and the first fixed electrode structure300is obtained through the conversion of the measured capacitance value. The first fixed electrode structure300is indirectly fixed by a third anchor803through the supporting arm1200, and the second fixed electrode structure610is fixed by a fourth anchor804. The movable electrode structure500is indirectly fixed by a second anchor802through two constraining hinges900which can prevent the movement of the movable electrode structure500from exceeding the allowable range. An embodiment of the actuating end855is a T-bar1100, wherein the T-bar1100is fixed on the movable electrode structure500, and is indirectly fixed by a first anchor801through two main hinges400. A first center point450is formed between the T-bar1100and the main hinges400at the two sides of the T-bar1100. The main hinges400are used to carry the most weight of the T-bar1100and the weight of the movable electrode structure500, and bear an elastic restoring force of returning the T-bar1100when the electrostatic force between the movable electrode structure500and the first fixed electrode structure300disappears. In order to avoid the T-bar1100and the carried object5000′ from separating by a lateral force applied to the T-bar1100or the carried object5000′, a fulcrum hinge700is configured on a vertical portion of the T-bar1100. The fulcrum hinge700can deform laterally to absorb the aforementioned lateral force. In addition, in order to maintain a parallelism of a head portion of the T-bar1100, i.e. the parallelism between the T-bar1100and the base plate surface852, the fulcrum hinge700can be designed to be undeformable under forces applied in the normal direction (Y direction inFIG. 5) of the base plate surface852.

Please refer toFIG. 6, which is a partial schematic diagram of an actuator wafer of the present invention. The actuator wafer20000includes a plurality of single-axis actuating structures.FIG. 6shows a part of an actuator wafer20000containing one single-axis actuator structure10000. After the single-axis actuator structure10000is cut from the actuator wafer20000, the single-axis actuator854is obtained. The single-axis actuating structure10000of the micro-electromechanical system is manufactured using semiconductor process technology, which can form a plurality of the single-axis actuators on a piece of the actuator wafer20000, and then the actuator wafer20000is cut into the plurality of the single-axis actuators. In order to avoid the trouble caused by process residues and debris, a cavity200is formed below the comb fingers520of the movable electrode structure500and the comb fingers320of the first fixed electrode structure300in the present invention, so that the residues and debris can be discharged from the cavity200or can be at least settled in the cavity200to keep away from each fingers. For the same reason, a third cavity20500is formed under the T-bar1100to facilitate the discharge of the residues and debris generated by the manufacturing process under the T-bar1100.

Please refer toFIG. 7andFIG. 8, whereinFIG. 7is an exploded view of an out-of-plane motion actuator of the present invention, andFIG. 8is a three dimensional diagram of the out-of-plane motion actuator of the present invention.FIG. 7andFIG. 8show that the single-axis actuator854formed by cutting from the single-axis actuating structure10000inFIG. 6is configured on an actuator connection seat6001′ to form the single-axis motion motor7045. InFIGS. 5, 7 and 8, it can be seen that the single-axis actuator854includes a substrate100, to which the actuating end855, the first anchor801, the second anchor802, the third anchor803and the fourth anchor804are connected. A control chip6008can be further configured on the actuator connection seat6001′ and adjacent to the single-axis actuating structure10000to control the single-axis actuating structure10000nearby. The actuator connection seat6001′ is fixed on the base plate6003by clamps6004. Contact pads6006of the actuator connection seat6001′ are electrically connected to metal pads6007on the base plate surface6005, causing the electronic signal to be transmitted to the control chip6008and each of the comb fingers520,320through the contact pads6006, the metal pads6007and the circuit in the actuator connection seat6001′ (figure not shown) to form a complete route of the electronic signal for the out-of-plane motion actuator6000. According to requirements, other electrical connection pads6007′ can be further configured on the base plate surface6005to electrically connect to other electronic elements (figure not shown). The metal pads6007and the electrical connection pads6007′ present, but are not limited to, one-to-one correspondence relationship. For the actuator connection seat6001′, the metal pads6007or the electrical connection pads6007′ can be used, that is, the position of the actuator connection seat6001′ can be determined according to the actual demand, such as a size of the carried object5000′.

Please refer toFIG. 9andFIG. 10, whereinFIG. 9is a schematic diagram of a motor having only one single-axis actuator (or called a single-sided single-axis-actuator motor) according to an embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 10is a schematic diagram of an actuation of the single-sided single-axis-actuator motor of the present invention.FIG. 9andFIG. 10show that one side of the single-sided single-axis-actuator motor8000is a fulcrum structure7000, and the opposite side of the single-sided single-axis-actuator motor8000is the single-axis motion motor7045of the present invention. Therefore, the fulcrum structure7000and the single-axis motion motor7045are respectively located at the two sides, the left and the right sides or the front and the rear sides, of the carried object5000′. Of course, the fulcrum structure7000and the single-axis motion motor7045can also be respectively located at the diagonal sides of the carried object5000′. Only a slight rotation of the carried object5000′ is allowed on the fulcrum structure7000. The fulcrum structure7000usually has, but is not limited to, a structure such as fulcrum hinge700(as shown inFIG. 5) to absorb shear stress caused by improper external forces. When the single-axis motion motor7045moves upwards or downwards, the position of the carried object5000′ connected thereto is also moved upwards or downwards along with the single-axis motion motor7045.FIG. 10shows the position of the carried object5000′ connecting to the single-axis motion motor7045while the single-axis motion motor7045moves upwards to a top dead center (TDC) or downwards to a bottom dead center (BDC). Furthermore, in order to protect the carried object5000′, a protective structure5000″ mounted above the carried object5000′ is provided in the present invention. The protective structure5000″ is usually supported by a supporting wall902of an accommodating base910. The out-of-plane motion motor7040(figure not shown) including the plurality of single-axis motion motors7045is configured on the accommodating bottom plate901of the accommodating base910.

Please refer toFIG. 11,FIG. 12andFIG. 13, whereinFIG. 11is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a two-sided single-axis-actuator motor of the present invention,FIG. 12is a schematic diagram of an actuation of the two-sided single-axis-actuator motor of the present invention, andFIG. 13is a schematic diagram of another actuation of the two-sided single-axis-actuator motor of the present invention.FIG. 11,FIG. 12andFIG. 13show that one side of the two-sided single-axis-actuator motor9000is the first single-axis motion motor7045-1of the present invention, and the opposite side of the two-sided single-axis-actuator motor9000is the second single-axis motion motor7045-2of the present invention.FIG. 12shows the position of the two ends of the carried object5000′ respectively connecting to the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2while the first single-axis motion motor7045moves up to its top dead center, and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2moves down to its bottom dead center at the same time. Contrary toFIG. 12,FIG. 13shows the position of the two ends of the carried object5000′ respectively connecting to the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2while the first single-axis motion motor7045moves down to its bottom dead center, and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2moves up to its top dead center at the same time. However, in the implementation state of some actuators, they can only move upwards or downwards, and then return to their original relatively low or relatively high positions. If the embodiments ofFIG. 12andFIG. 13are understood as the actuator that can only move upwards, it can be understood inFIG. 12that the second single-axis motion motor7045-2remains stationary, while the first single-axis motion motor7045-1moves upwards, for example, to its top dead center. In contrast, it can be understood inFIG. 13that the first single-axis motion motor7045-1remains stationary, while the second single-axis motion motor7045-2moves upwards. Similarly, if the embodiments ofFIG. 12andFIG. 13are understood as the actuator that can only move downwards, it can be understood inFIG. 12that the first single-axis motion motor7045-1remains stationary, while the second single-axis motion motor7045-2moves downwards, for example, to its bottom dead center. In contrast, it can be understood inFIG. 13that the second single-axis motion motor7045-2remains stationary, while the first single-axis motion motor7045-1moves downwards.

Please refer toFIG. 14, which is a schematic diagram of another actuation of the double-sided single-axis actuator of the present invention. When the single-axis actuator can only move upwards or downwards, the present invention can still achieve both translational and rolling movement according to the difference of the moving amplitude of the two actuators. Please see the two downward hollow arrows inFIG. 14, when the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2can only move downwards, the downward movement amount of the first single-axis motion motor7045-1is larger, and the downward movement amount of the second single-axis motion motor7045-2is smaller. Similarly, please see the two upward hollow arrows inFIG. 14, when the first single-axis motion motor7045-1and the second single-axis motion motor7045-2can only move upwards, the upward movement amount of the first single-axis motion motor7045-1is smaller, and the upward movement amount of the second single-axis motion motor7045-2is larger.

Please refer toFIG. 15, which is a planar schematic diagram of a displacement magnifying mechanism of the present invention. In order to increase the moving distance, a displacement magnifying mechanism4000can be used in the present invention. The displacement magnifying mechanism4000of the present invention includes a first lever L1and a second lever L2, wherein an end of the first lever L1is a first lever fulcrum L1f,and the other end of the first lever L1connects to the second lever L2through a second contact point L2c.The point of application of the out-of-plane motion actuator6000is at a first contact point L1c.Because the first contact point L1cis located between the first lever fulcrum L1fand the second contact point L2c,the moving amplitude of the second contact point L2cis larger than that of the first contact point L1c,when the out-of-plane motion actuator6000moves. Similarly, because the second contact point L2cis located between a second lever fulcrum L2fand a carrying point L2m,the moving amplitude of the carrying point L2mis larger than that of the second contact point L2c,when the second contact point L2cmoves. Therefore, the displacement of the out-of-plane motion actuator6000can be magnified, so that the displacement of the carried object5000′ is larger than that of the out-of-plane motion actuator6000. If a more significant amplification effect is desired, a first distance a is smaller than a second distance b, and a third distance c is smaller than a fourth distance d, wherein the first distance a is a distance between the first contact point L1cand the first lever fulcrum L1f,the second distance b is a vertical distance between the first contact point L1cand the second contact point L2c,the third distance c is a distance between the second contact point L2cand the second lever fulcrum L2f,and the fourth distance d is a vertical distance between the second contact point L2cand the carrying point L2m.Accordingly, although the piezoelectric material in the prior art uses a displacement amplifying mechanism to enlarge its moving distance, the original displacement distance of the actuator of the present invention is much greater than that of the piezoelectric material, and thus the overall displacement distance achieved by the present invention is still far greater than the displacement distance of the piezoelectric material after being amplified by the displacement amplifying mechanism.

An embodiment of the application of the out-of-plane motion motor is that the out-of-plane motion motor is applied in a tunable spectrum sensing device50000. Please refer toFIG. 16, which is the schematic sectional view of an embodiment of the tunable spectrum sensing device50000of the present invention. For the tunable spectrum sensing device50000, the out-of-plane motion motor54000carries a first glass51000. The first glass51000may be glass with an anti-reflection layer. The tunable spectrum sensing device50000also includes a device body52000, the out-of-plane motion motor54000mounted on the device body52000and a second glass53000also mounted on the device body52000. The second glass53000may also be a glass with an anti-reflection layer. The first glass51000and the second glass53000form a tunable spectral filter. A predetermined size of the gap between the first glass51000and the second glass53000is chosen based on application needs. The first glass51000and the second glass53000may be glass chips. The out-of-plane motion motor54000includes a base54100, a sensor54200and a single-axis motion motor54300. The base54100corresponds to the base plate851inFIG. 1. InFIG. 1, the base plate851has a base plate surface852and a base plate frame853disposed on the periphery of the base plate surface852. In some embodiments of the tunable spectrum sensing device50000, the base54100may not have the base plate frame. On the other hand, the device body52000usually includes a base plate with a frame disposed on the periphery of the surface of the base plate. The second glass53000is disposed on the frame, so that the second glass53000and the device body52000form a closed space. The vacuum level of the closed space can be controlled. The base54100has a normal direction, which is parallel to the surface of the paper inFIG. 16. For the tunable spectrum sensing device50000, the sensor54200of the out-of-plane motion motor54000is disposed on the base54100. The sensor54200is responsible for converting the light signal to electrical signal, and can be a thermopile sensor, a photodetector, a thermopile sensor array, a photodetector array, a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, a CMOS image sensor with an actuator, a thermal image sensor, a thermal image sensor with an actuator or a combination thereof. The sensor54200may be a chip.

In general, the out-of-plane motion motor54000includes at least one single-axis motion motor54300. Each of the at least one single-axis motion motor54300includes a single-axis actuator854.FIG. 5shows an embodiment of the single-axis actuator854, andFIG. 17is a schematic sectional view of the single-axis actuator854along the section line C-C′ inFIG. 5. Please refer toFIGS. 5, 7 and 16-17, the single-axis actuator854includes a substrate100and the actuating end855connected to the substrate100, as shown inFIG. 7. The first glass51000is mounted on and moved by the actuating end855. In mounting the first glass51000, the first glass51000is well aligned and fixed to the actuating end855. It is seen fromFIG. 17that the substrate100of the single-axis actuator854has the cavity200and an electronic element110. The electronic element110disposed on the substrate100represents the integration of all the motion control electronic components and circuits on the substrate100. Therefore, the actuating end855inFIG. 16may be driven by the electronic element110for carrying and moving the first glass51000. The substrate100of the single-axis actuator854has a front surface120and a rear surface130, and the cavity200penetrates through the front surface120and the rear surface130in the Z-direction as defined inFIG. 5. As shown inFIG. 5, the single-axis actuator854may have a comb type driving capacitor including a fixed electrode structure300fixed on the substrate100(shown inFIG. 17) and a movable electrode structure500connected to the main hinge400. The size of the cavity200has to be sufficiently large to completely remove the residual materials from processing; a square with side length slightly more than 10 microns would be sufficiently large. To put it another way, if one looks upwards from the cavity200on the rear surface130and sees any comb finger, then the cavity200is sufficiently large. Without the cavity200, the comb fingers320,520inFIG. 5have to be sparsely arranged to remove the residual materials. But when the comb fingers320,520are sparsely arranged, the efficiency of electrical-to-mechanical energy conversion is low. In other words, the voltage applied between the first fixed electrode structure300and the movable electrode structure500has to be high. Hence, the cavity200allows the removal of residual process contaminants and the improvement of the efficiency of electrical-to-mechanical energy conversion. From another point of view, the cavity200allows the single-axis actuator854to have a larger motion stroke compared to the single-axis actuators in prior art for the same voltage applied. An embodiment of the actuating end855inFIG. 16is the T-bar1100inFIG. 5. In the embodiment shown inFIGS. 5, 7 and 17, the T-bar1100is connected to the substrate100through the main hinge400and the fulcrum hinge700.

The fulcrum hinge700is designed to prevent the first glass51000from peeling off from the T-bar1100when there is a shear force at a boundary surface between the first glass51000and the T-bar1100. In general, the actuating end855carries and moves an object, and the fulcrum hinge700prevents the object from peeling off from the T-bar1100.FIG. 18Ashows an example in which the center of gravity of the first glass51000aligns the center of gravity of the single-axis actuator without the T-bar and the fulcrum hinge. In comparison,FIG. 18Bshows an example in which the center of gravity of the first glass51000does not align the center of gravity of the single-axis actuator without the T-bar and the fulcrum hinge. InFIG. 18B, the stress concentrates on the circled area, and thus, a torque is produced.FIG. 18Cshows an embodiment of the present invention with both the fulcrum hinge700and the T-bar1100to avoid the problem arising fromFIG. 18B. The fulcrum hinge700has low stiffness in the X-direction shown inFIG. 5, but high stiffness in the Y-direction and Z-direction. In other words, the stiffness in the Y-direction kYis much greater than the stiffness in the X-direction kX, i.e. kY>>kX, and the stiffness in the Z-direction kZis also much greater than the stiffness in the X-direction kX, i.e. kZ>>kX. High stiffness in the Y-direction is necessary to avoid the decrease of displacement in the Y-direction. One skilled in the art can design a variety of fulcrum hinges to meet the requirements.FIGS. 19A and 19Bshow the schematic top view of two embodiments of the fulcrum hinge in addition to the fulcrum hinge700shown inFIG. 5 or 18C. For the case without the fulcrum hinge700, an external X-directional (as defined inFIG. 5) force applied to the object carried by the actuating end may generate a shear force and a moment at the boundary surface between the object and the T-bar1100. The large shear force and/or the moment may cause the object to peel off from the surface of T-bar1100. For the case with the fulcrum hinge700, the external X-directional force applied to the object may lead to a deformation of the fulcrum hinge700to reduce the shear force and the moment at the boundary surface between the object and the T-bar1100. In some circumstances, the fulcrum hinge700can be omitted if the shear force is negligible.

The single-axis actuator854allows the making of the out-of-plane motion motor54000with a large motion stroke, the robustness of impact, the easy removal of residual process contaminants, an improvement of the efficiency of electrical-to-mechanical energy conversion and the off-axis motion decoupling of movable comb structure.

The basic structure of the out-of-plane motion motor54000of the tunable spectrum sensing device50000is shown inFIGS. 7 and 8. The base54100inFIG. 16corresponds to the base plate6003inFIGS. 7 and 8. InFIGS. 7 and 8, the single-axis motion motor7045, with the single-axis actuator854parallelly fixed on the actuator connection seat6001′ of the single-axis motion motor7045, is fixed on the base plate6003in such a way that the single-axis actuator854has a motion direction parallel to the normal direction of the base plate6003. If the out-of-plane motion motor54000includes more than one single-axis motion motor54300fixed on the base54100, each of the single-axis motion motors54300may include a single-axis actuator854moving parallel to the normal direction of the base54100. Each of the single-axis motion motors54300has contact pads6006(shown inFIGS. 7 and 8) and there are corresponding metal pads6007and electrical connection pads6007′ (shown inFIGS. 7 and 8) on the base54100. The single-axis motion motors54300can be fixed on the base54100by welding contact pads6006with corresponding metal pads6007on the base54100. The clamps6004shown inFIGS. 7 and 8may be omitted in some embodiments.

In the embodiment of the tunable spectrum sensing device50000shown inFIG. 16, there are two single-axis motion motors54300. As the motion displacement of each of the single-axis motion motors54300is independently changed, the first glass51000can be driven to move in the out-of-plane direction or rotate around an in-plane direction. In other words, the first glass51000can perform single-axis rotational and out-of-plane translational movements. The first glass51000can also be kept at a specific rotation angle, positioned at a specific out-of-plane displacement or programmed to perform a specific scan trajectory motion. When the gap between the first glass51000and the second glass53000is changed by the two single-axis motion motors54300, the incident light wavelength received by the sensor54200is changed. As the sensor54200is a linear array type sensor such as thermopile linear array, the tunable spectrum sensing device50000is able to provide each pixel in the linear array with light of different wavelength.

A single single-axis motion motor54300can also be used in the tunable spectrum sensing device50000. The design may be similar to that depicted inFIG. 9, in which one single-axis motion motors54300is replaced by a fixed support allowing a slight rotation of the first glass51000around an in-plane axis defined by the fixed support. There can be other designs for a tunable spectrum sensing device50000using a single single-axis motion motor54300, including different positions and orientations of the single single-axis motion motor54300. One skilled in the art can design a variety of such tunable spectrum sensing devices to meet the application needs. In a tunable spectrum sensing device50000using a single single-axis motion motor54300, the sensor54200may be a linear array type sensor.

In another embodiment, a similar device with a single single-axis motion motor can also be used in fluid flow control. The fluid flow control device using a single single-axis motion motor may function like a fan. The object carried by the actuating end in the fluid flow control device may be a plate made of, e.g., silicon, glass or metal. The present invention provides the out-of-plane motion motor54000with a single-axis motion motor54300, and one skilled in the art can design the rest of the fluid flow control device to meet the application needs.

Three single-axis motion motors54300can also be used in the tunable spectrum sensing device50000to achieve three-degree-of-freedom movements as mentioned above. Another embodiment with three degrees of freedom utilizes the basic structure shown inFIGS. 3 and 4. There are four single-axis motion motors54300and the schematic diagonal sectional view of the tunable spectrum sensing device50000looks similar toFIG. 16. As the motion displacement of each of the single-axis motion motors54300is independently changed, the first glass51000can perform dual-axis rotational and out-of-plane translational movements. As the sensor54200is an array type sensor such as thermopile array, this single axis translational and dual axis rotational motion tunable spectrum sensing device50000is able to provide each pixel in the array with light of different wavelength.

Embodiments

1. A tunable spectrum sensing device, including: a device body; an out-of-plane motion motor mounted on the device body and including: a base having a normal direction; a sensor disposed on the base; and a single-axis actuator having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction, fixed on the base and including: a substrate with an electronic element; and an actuating end connected to the substrate and driven by the electronic element; a first glass mounted on and moved by the actuating end; and a second glass mounted on the device body.
2. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to Embodiment 1, wherein the substrate of the single-axis actuator has a front surface and a rear surface, and a cavity penetrates through the front and the rear surfaces.
3. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to Embodiment 1 or 2, wherein the out-of-plane motion motor further includes a second single-axis actuator having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction.
4. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-3, wherein the out-of-plane motion motor further includes a second, a third and a fourth single-axis actuators each having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction.
5. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-4, wherein the first glass and the second glass are glass chips.
6. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-5, wherein the sensor is one selected from a group consisting of a thermopile sensor, a photodetector, a thermopile sensor array, a photodetector array, a CMOS image sensor, a CMOS image sensor with an actuator, a thermal image sensor, a thermal image sensor with an actuator and a combination thereof.
7. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-6, wherein the actuating end is a T-bar.
8. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-7, wherein the single-axis actuator further includes a main hinge and a fulcrum hinge, and the T-bar is connected to the substrate through the main hinge and the fulcrum hinge.
9. The tunable spectrum sensing device according to any one of Embodiments 1-8, wherein the fulcrum hinge is designed to prevent the first glass from peeling off from the T-bar when there is a shear force at a boundary surface between the first glass and the T-bar.
10. An out-of-plane motion motor for carrying an object, including: a base having a normal direction; and a single-axis motion motor having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction, fixed on the base and including a single-axis actuator carrying and moving the object.
11. The out-of-plane motion motor according to Embodiment 10, further including a second single-axis motion motor.
12. The out-of-plane motion motor according to Embodiment 10 or 11, further including a second, a third and a fourth single-axis motion motors.
13. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-12, wherein the single-axis actuator has a substrate with an electronic element.
14. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-13, wherein the single-axis actuator further has an actuating end connected to the substrate and driven by the electronic element for carrying and moving the object.
15. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-14, wherein the substrate of the single-axis actuator has a front surface and a rear surface, and a cavity penetrates through the front and the rear surfaces.
16. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-15, wherein the actuating end is a T-bar.
17. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-16, wherein the single-axis actuator further has a main hinge and a fulcrum hinge, and the T-bar is connected to the substrate through the main hinge and the fulcrum hinge.
18. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-17, wherein the fulcrum hinge is designed to prevent the object from peeling off from the T-bar when there is a shear force at a boundary surface between the object and the T-bar.
19. The out-of-plane motion motor according to any one of Embodiments 10-18, wherein the single-axis actuator further has a comb type driving capacitor including a fixed electrode structure fixed on the substrate and a movable electrode structure connected to the main hinge.
20. A method for producing an out-of-plane motion motor for carrying an object, including the following steps: providing a base having a normal direction; providing a single-axis motion motor having a motion direction parallel to the normal direction and including a single-axis actuator; and fixing the single-axis motion motor on the base so that the single-axis actuator carries and moves the object.

The out-of-plane motion motor provided by the present invention can keep an object at a specific rotation angle, position the object at a specific out-of-plane displacement or be programmed for the object to perform a specific scan trajectory motion. The out-of-plane motion motor also includes a single-axis actuator which allows the out-of-plane linear motion motor to have a large motion stroke. A single tunable spectrum sensing device including the out-of-plane motion motor can satisfy the spectral bandwidth requirement. Therefore, multiple tunable spectrum sensing devices are not needed.

It is contemplated that modifications and combinations will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and these modifications and combinations are within the scope of this invention.