Three-dimensional motion control of an untethered magnetic object using three rotating permanent magnets

Magnetic motion control has been actively studied mainly for the purpose of biomedical applications. However, in many cases, many actuator magnets surround a small magnet to be moved, and they consume large electric power. In some cases, complex calculations are required to estimate the control input of the actuator magnets. This study proposes a simple method to move a small magnet to the desired positions. For this, three cylindrical permanent magnets magnetized in the radial direction were positioned as the sides of a triangle; these actuator magnets were rotated using motors. By monitoring the position of the small magnet and through simple feedback control based on the angles of the three actuator magnets, the untethered small magnet could be moved along arbitrary three-dimensional (3D) paths. The control principle was established by calculating the magnetic force and torque acting on the small magnet for some sets of actuator-magnet angles.