Direct electrostatic levitation and propulsion

A new type of mechanism, called "direct electrostatic levitation and propulsion" (DELP), has been successfully developed. The novel aspect of this mechanism is that an object can be directly levitated and driven via electrostatic forces. In this paper, a brief review of the basic principles of this system is presented. This is followed by a description of the structure of a prototype DELP mechanism, including electrode design, position feedback control method for levitation, driving principle and operational procedures. Experimental results which demonstrate completely contactless transportation of a 3.5 inch aluminum hard disk media are also presented.