Transplantation tool integrated with MEMS manipulator for retinal pigment epithelium cell sheet

This paper reports a transplantation tool for the retinal pigment epithelium in an eye. We have developed MEMS manipulator as an end-effector for transplantation of retinal pigment epithelium cell sheet. Typical size of MEMS manipulator is 3mm×3mm. MEMS manipulator was made of polydimethylsiloxane and driven by pneumatic balloon actuators. MEMS manipulator have been improved and integrated with several functions by sensors and actuators. MEMS manipulator is integrated into a transplantation tool. A whole tool also requires improvements based on our experimental results. We have improved our tool in terms of assembling, sealing, and operation.