Mobile system and mobile body therefor

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure provide a moving body and a moving system with improved rotational control and performance. Such a moving system may include a moving body movable in response to an external magnetic field and a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in a non-circular configuration to generate the external magnetic field. The moving body may include a drive magnet configured to generate a force to move the moving body in response to the external magnetic field, the drive magnet including a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body, each magnetized region having a respective magnetization direction. At least five non-overlapping paths may be interposed between each pair of adjacent, different magnetized regions, and each magnetized region of each pair of magnetized regions may include a magnetization direction different from each other. Each non-overlapping path may extend from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] (CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS) This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 445,582, filed February 14, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] (Field) FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates generally to displacement systems or conveyors and movers for such systems. [Background technology]

[0003] Motion systems or conveyors, such as XY tables or rotary tables, are often used in a variety of processes, including manufacturing, inspection, and assembly processes. These systems may include a stator and a mover, and are commonly referred to as robotic devices, mover devices, or movable stages. The stator drives the mover. Movement in the X and Y directions can be achieved by stacking two linear stages (e.g., an X stage and a Y stage) with connecting bearings. Alternatively, a single motion stage capable of X and Y movement can be used, eliminating the need for additional bearings. It may be desirable for such motion stages to also have at least some Z-direction motion capability.

[0004] Attempts have been made to design movement systems using the interaction of current carrying coils and permanent magnets. Examples include: U.S. Patent No. 6,003,230 U.S. Patent No. 6,097,114 U.S. Patent No. 6,208,045 U.S. Patent No. 6,441,514 U.S. Patent No. 6,847,134 U.S. Patent No. 6,987,335 U.S. Patent No. 7,436,135 U.S. Patent No. 7,948,122 U.S. Patent Publication No. 2008 / 0203828 WJ Kim and DL Trumper, High-precision magnetic levitation stage for photolithography. Precision Eng. 22 2 (1998), pp. 66-77 DL Trumper, et al, “Magnet arrays for synchronous machines”, IEEE Industry Applications Society Annual Meeting, vol.1, pp. 9 - 18, 1993 JW Jansen, CMM van Lierop, EA Lomonova, AJA Vandenput, “Magnetically Levitated Planar Actuator with Moving Magnets”, IEEE Tran. Ind. App.,Vol 44, No 4, 2008

[0005] More recent techniques for implementing moving systems having a moving body and a stator are described in the following patent applications: PCT Application No. PCT / CA2012 / 050751 (WO / 2013 / 059934) "DISPLACEMENT DEVICES AND METHODS FOR FABRICATION, USE AND CONTROL OF SAME"; PCT Application No. PCT / CA2014 / 050739(WO / 2015 / 017933) “DISPLACEMENT DEVICES AND METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DETECTING AND ESTIMATING MOTION ASSOCIATED WITH SAME”; PCT application number PCT / CA2015 / 050549 (WO / 2015 / 188281) "DISPLACEMENT DEVICES, MOVEABLE STAGES FOR DISPLACEMENT DEVICES AND METHODS FOR FABRICATION"; PCT Application No. PCT / CA2015 / 050523 (WO / 2015 / 184553) "METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLABLY MOVING MULTIPLE MOVEABLE STAGES IN A DISPLACEMENT DEVICE"; PCT Application No. PCT / CA2015 / 050157 (WO / 2015 / 179962) "DISPLACEMENT DEVICES AND METHODS FOR FABRICATION, USE AND CONTROL OF SAME"

[0006] However, existing moving systems may lack certain functions or performance. For example, existing systems may have limited rotation control and performance due to low efficiency in generating driving force at a specific orientation or position of the moving body on the stator. Summary of the Invention

[0007] Embodiments of the present disclosure can provide vehicles and mobility systems with improved rotational control and performance.

[0008] In at least one embodiment, a mobile body operable in response to at least one external magnetic field is disclosed, the mobile body comprising at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force that moves the mobile body in response to the at least one external magnetic field, the at least one drive magnet having a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the mobile body, each magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions having a respective magnetization direction, wherein at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each magnetized region of each pair of adjacent magnetized regions having a respective magnetization direction that is different from each other, each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extending from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions, and at least a portion of at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects the reference point and at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by the at least one boundary region.

[0009] In at least one embodiment, a movement system is disclosed, comprising: a moving body movable in response to at least one external magnetic field; and a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in a non-circular shape and generating at least one external magnetic field, wherein the moving body has at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force that moves the moving body in response to the external magnetic field, the at least one drive magnet having a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body, each magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions having a respective magnetization direction, wherein at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions that are different from each other, and each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extends from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0010] In some embodiments, the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least twelve non-overlapping paths interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0011] In some embodiments, the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least sixteen non-overlapping paths interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0012] In some embodiments, at least one of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

[0013] In some embodiments, at least a portion of at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions is intersected by a line passing through the reference point and a line passing through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions separated by the at least one boundary region.

[0014] In some embodiments, adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions have different magnetization directions.

[0015] In some embodiments, a portion of a centerline of at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects with a line passing through the reference point at a non-zero inclination angle, and the centerline extends equally spaced between adjacent pairs of at least five non-overlapping paths that delimit at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0016] In some embodiments, the plurality of magnetized regions are disposed between a first cylindrical surface and a second cylindrical surface concentrically disposed with the first cylindrical surface, the axis of the first cylindrical surface and the axis of the second cylindrical surface passing through a reference point, the first cylindrical surface having a first diameter, and the second cylindrical surface having a second diameter greater than the first diameter.

[0017] In some embodiments, the at least one drive magnet comprises a plurality of drive magnets.

[0018] In some embodiments, each of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0019] In some embodiments, the plurality of electrical conductors are arranged along a grid of linear spaces.

[0020] In some embodiments, the plurality of electrical conductors includes a first plurality of electrical conductors and a second plurality of electrical conductors, wherein the first plurality of electrical conductors extend in a first direction, at least some of the first plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in a second direction that is not parallel to the first direction, and the second plurality of electrical conductors extend in a third direction that is not parallel to the first direction and are spaced apart from one another in a fourth direction that is not parallel to the third direction.

[0021] In some embodiments, the first direction, the second direction, the third direction, and the fourth direction generally lie in a common plane.

[0022] In some embodiments, at least some of the first plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in the first direction.

[0023] In some embodiments, at least some of the second plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in a third direction.

[0024] In some embodiments, each of the first plurality of electrical conductors has a fixed first conductor length in a first direction.

[0025] In some embodiments, the first diameter is greater than 80% of the first conductor length.

[0026] In some embodiments, each of the second plurality of electrical conductors has a fixed second conductor length in the third direction.

[0027] In some embodiments, the first diameter is greater than 80% of the second conductor length.

[0028] Other aspects and features will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following description of exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Examples are illustrated in the reference figures shown in the drawings. The examples and figures disclosed herein are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0030] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional front view of a movement system in one embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a movement system in another embodiment. [Figure 3] 3 is a plan view of the motion system of FIG. 2, showing, in cross section, magnetized regions of the motion body of the motion system of FIG. 2 and electrical conductors of the stator of the motion system of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a plan view of a moving system according to another embodiment, showing a part of the magnetized region of the moving body of the moving system and the electrical conductor of the stator of the moving system in cross section. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a plan view of a moving system according to another embodiment, showing a part of the magnetized region of the moving body of the moving system and the electrical conductor of the stator of the moving system in cross section. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a plan view of a vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle system of FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a plan view of a moving system according to another embodiment, showing a part of the magnetized region of the moving body of the moving system and the electrical conductor of the stator of the moving system in cross section. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a plan view of an alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the movement system of FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the movement system of FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems of FIGS. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems of FIGS. [Figure 12]FIG. 12 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems of FIGS. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a side cross-sectional view of the moving body of FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a plan view of an arrangement of magnetized regions in another embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a plan view of another arrangement of magnetized regions in another embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle system of FIG. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle system of FIG. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is another plan view of the vehicle of FIG. 19 with the magnetization direction annotations removed for clarity. [Figure 21] FIG. 21 is a plan view of a vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and / or 7, illustrating the effect of introducing a tilt angle into the vehicle. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a plan view of a vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and / or 7, illustrating the effect of using multiple tilt angles on the vehicle. [Figure 23] FIG. 23 is a plan view of the mover of FIG. 19, showing the areas of the mover involved in generating forces. [Figure 24] FIG. 24 is a plan view of a mobile body that can be used in combination with the mobile system shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and / or 7, accompanied by a graph showing the magnetic field of the mobile body. [Figure 25]FIG. 25 is a plan view of the moving body of FIG. 24 in different rotational positions, accompanied by graphs showing the magnetic field of the moving body in the different rotational positions. [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is a plan view of the mobile of FIG. 19, accompanied by a graph showing the magnetic field of the mobile. [Figure 27] FIG. 27 is a plan view of the moving body of FIG. 26 in different rotational positions, accompanied by graphs showing the magnetic field of the moving body in the different rotational positions. [Figure 28] FIG. 28 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. [Figure 29] FIG. 29 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. [Figure 30] FIG. 30 is a plan view of another alternative vehicle that can be used in combination with the vehicle systems shown in FIGS. [Figure 31] FIG. 31 is a schematic diagram illustrating a control system that can be used in combination with the movement systems shown in FIGS. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] Manufacturing, assembly, and inspection systems often use motion systems or conveyors to transport components for processing, assembly, and packaging. Electromagnetic planar motors are often used as motion systems in such applications. Electromagnetic planar motors generally have one or more moving bodies for holding the components and one or more stators for supporting and driving / actuating the moving bodies. This specification describes a moving body having a circularly distributed magnetized region and a motion system for using such a moving body.

[0032] Referring to FIG. 1 , a mobile system 50 in one embodiment is shown schematically and includes a mobile body 100, a stator 200, and a controller 300. The mobile body 100 may be configured to carry one or more elements (not shown). The mobile body 100 may also be referred to as a "mobile device," a "robotic device," a "mobile stage," a "mobile stage," or a "mobile motion stage." Furthermore, the term "element" is used herein as a general term, and non-limiting examples of elements carried by the mobile body 100 include workpieces, workpieces under construction, raw materials, materials, samples, biological samples, pharmaceuticals, loads, devices, and assemblies. In the illustrated embodiment, the mobile system 50 includes only a single mobile body 100. However, other embodiments may include multiple mobile bodies, and in some other embodiments, multiple mobile bodies may hold holders that hold one or more elements. In some systems, all mobile bodies are substantially similar or nearly identical. However, other systems may include mobile bodies of various sizes and configurations.

[0033] The stator 200 supports and drives the moving body 100, which in turn moves the stator 200 to another position within the moving system 50. In the illustrated embodiment, the moving system 50 has one stator 200. However, alternative embodiments may include multiple stators, and in some alternative embodiments, the multiple stators may be of different types. For example, in some alternative embodiments, some stators have a wide range of motion, while other stators act as flyways for the range of motion, allowing for rapid movement of the moving body or part in tight spaces. This can be achieved by arranging stators made up of multiple electromagnetic drive regions arranged in a line along the direction of movement of the moving body.

[0034] The controller 300 controls the stator 200 and the mobile object 100. The controller 300 can be directly connected to the stator 200 via a wired or wireless connection to indirectly control the mobile object 100 via the stator 200. Alternatively, the controller 300 can be connected to the mobile object 100 via a wired or wireless connection to allow the controller 300 to communicate directly with the mobile object 100. For example, a high-speed data cable such as an Ethernet cable, an HDMI® cable, or any cable with sufficient data rate bandwidth may be used. In some embodiments, the controller 300 may be fully integrated with the stator 200. In embodiments where the controller 300 is fully integrated within the stator 200, any electrical connection method may be used, such as a ribbon cable, an edgeboard connector, a wire connector, a header and pins, or the like. Wireless connections include Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Zigbee, cellular, NFC, etc. In some embodiments, multiple controllers may be used within the mobile system 50. For example, controller 300 may control only stator 200 or a group of stators that includes stator 200, while another controller may control a different stator or group of stators.

[0035] In general, the moving body 100 and the stator 200 may interact via one or more magnetic fields, and the stator 200 may provide forces and torques to the moving body 100 to controllably move the moving body 100. The controller 300 may determine and provide commands to the stator 200 to generate specific forces and torques to move the moving body 100.

[0036] Two coordinate systems can be defined to describe the movement of the moving body 100 relative to the stator 200. In particular, a stator coordinate system fixed to the stator 200 can be defined. A moving body coordinate system may also be defined, which is fixed to the moving body 100 and moves with the moving body 100 relative to the stator 200 and the stator coordinate system. It will be understood that these coordinate systems can be described using a conventional Cartesian coordinate system (X, Y, Z), or other coordinate systems can also be used. For convenience and simplicity, in this description and related drawings, directions in the stator coordinate system (e.g., X, Y, and Z directions) and directions in the moving body coordinate system may be shown and described as being consistent with each other. That is, the stator X (or Xs) direction, the stator Y (or Ys) direction, and the stator Z (or Zs) direction may be shown to be consistent with the moving body X (or Xm), moving body Y (Ym), and moving body Z (or Zm) directions, respectively. Thus, references to X, Y, and / or Z directions may refer to directions in either or both of the stator and mobile body coordinate systems. However, as will be apparent from the context of this specification, in some embodiments and / or situations, the mobile body 100 moves relative to the stator 200, causing the stator and mobile body coordinate systems to not coincide with each other. In such cases, the following convention may apply: the terms stator X, stator Y, and stator Z may be used to refer to directions and / or coordinates in the stator coordinate system, and the terms mobile body X, mobile body Y, and mobile body Z may be used to refer to directions and / or coordinates in the mobile body coordinate system. The symbols Xm, Ym, and Zm may be used to refer to the mobile body X, mobile body Y, and mobile body Z directions, respectively. The symbols Xs, Ys, and Zs may be used to refer to the stator X, stator Y, and stator Z directions, respectively. The symbols X, Y, and Z are used to refer to either or both of the Mover X, Mover Y, Mover Z, and / or Stator X, Stator Y, and Stator Z directions, respectively. In some embodiments, during normal operation, the Mover Z direction and the Stator Z direction are generally in the same direction (e.g., within ±30° in some embodiments, within ±10° in some embodiments, and within ±2° in some embodiments).

[0037] The moving body 100 includes a structural frame 120 and one or more drive magnets 110 secured to the structural frame 120. The structural frame 120 may be used to support the magnets, facilitate adhesion, and / or provide an interface with components, fixtures, or tools. In some embodiments, the structural frame 120 may optionally be used to attach additional mounting or positioning features (not shown). The one or more drive magnets 110 may also be referred to as a "drive magnet assembly" or, more generally, a "magnet assembly." The one or more drive magnets 110 may be, for example, permanent magnets. In some embodiments, the one or more drive magnets 110 may include multiple magnetized regions, each having a corresponding magnetization direction. In FIG. 1 , the moving body 100 is shown including a single drive magnet 110. However, in some embodiments, the moving body 100 may include more than one drive magnet 110, i.e., the moving body 100 may include multiple drive magnets 110. In such an embodiment, one, some, or all of the plurality of drive magnets 110 may be fixed to the structural frame 120. The one or more drive magnets 110 are configured to respond to one or more external magnetic fields, and in particular, are configured to generate a force in response to the one or more external magnetic fields to move the mobile unit 100. An example of such a drive magnet is described and illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 10,222,237 (incorporated herein by reference) as an array of permanent magnets 112A, 112B, 112C, 112D (or collectively, magnet array 112).

[0038] Referring to FIG. 1 , the stator 200 includes sensors 202 and electrical conductors 206. Each sensor 202 is configured to measure at least one magnetic field. Each sensor 202 can accurately measure only the magnetic field within its specific range. An example of such a sensor is described and illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 10,222,237 as magnetic field sensor 501. The sensors 202 may include, for example, Hall-effect magnetic field sensors, magnetoresistive sensors, and / or other suitable types of magnetic field sensors capable of measuring magnetic flux density. In FIG. 1 , the stator 200 is shown as including three sensors 202. However, it should be understood that in some embodiments, the stator 200 may include only one sensor 202, two sensors 202, or more than three sensors 202. The sensors 202 may be positioned at different X positions shown in FIG. 1 as well as positions extending along the Y direction.

[0039] Each electrical conductor 206 is configured to generate at least one external magnetic field. The electrical conductors 206 may be, for example, coils. Examples of such coils are described and illustrated as coil traces 126 in U.S. Pat. No. 10,222,237. While FIG. 1 illustrates the stator 200 as including four electrical conductors 206, in some embodiments, the stator 200 may include one, two, three, or more than four electrical conductors 206. In some embodiments, the stator 200 may have multiple electrical conductors distributed in one or more planar layers. In some embodiments, the arrangement of the electrical conductors 206 may include a first group of coils linearly arranged and / or elongated along a first direction (e.g., the X direction shown in FIG. 1 ). The first group of coils may include a second coil pitch or spacing in a second direction (e.g., the Y direction shown in FIG. 1 ). The electrical conductor 206 may include a second group of coils linearly extending along a second direction. The second group of coils may include a first coil pitch or spacing in the first direction. The pitch / spacing of the first and second coils may be equal. In some embodiments, the electrical conductor 206 may be linearly extending in a different direction (e.g., linearly extending in the X or Y direction) and vertically overlap other electrical conductors.

[0040] The sensors 202 and electrical conductors 206 may be arranged in a pattern on the stator 200, for example, as described and shown in U.S. Pat. No. 10,222,237. The pattern may include one or more sensors 202 arranged around each periphery of the electrical conductors 206. For example, one sensor 202 may be arranged at each end of the electrical conductors 206. Other patterns are possible. It will be appreciated that the sensors 202 may be arranged in a pattern near or around the electrical conductors 206 to provide appropriate feedback to the controller 300 for position detection and control of the vehicle 100, for example. In some embodiments, the stator 200 may further include a plurality of iron teeth (not shown).

[0041] The stator 200 has a work surface 204 along which the mobile unit 100 moves. Generally, the work surface 204 defines a continuous area over which the mobile unit 100 can be controlled by the stator 200. With appropriate feedback control algorithms implemented by the controller 300 and appropriate position feedback from the sensors 202, the controller 300 and the stator 200 can move and control the mobile unit 100. The work surface 204 may be flat, curved, cylindrical, spherical, or have another shape that allows the mobile unit 100 to move along the work surface 204. In some embodiments, multiple stators may define a composite work surface, where the work surfaces of each stator may be configured to combine into a larger composite work surface. While the work surface 204 is shown horizontally in FIG. 1 , it is understood that the work surface 204 may be mounted vertically or at an angle relative to gravity.

[0042] The mobile unit 100 may move on the work surface 204 in a "contact mode" or a "non-contact mode." In the contact mode (also known as a "sitting mode"), a contact medium such as a sliding bearing or a rolling bearing may be used. In the non-contact mode (also known as a "levitation mode"), a controllable gap 52 may be maintained in the Z direction (vertical direction) between the mobile unit 100 and the work surface 204 of the stator 200. The gap 52 may be an air gap. The mobile unit 100 may be placed on the work surface 204 without moving, which may be in a contact mode or a non-contact mode. In the non-contact mode, the mobile unit 100 may include six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) of controllable motion (known as an "active levitation mode"). Alternatively, the mobile unit 100 may maintain the gap 52 by passive levitation means (known as a "passive levitation mode"). In the passive levitation mode, the vehicle 100 can remain levitated above the work surface 204 in a non-contact mode.

[0043] In some embodiments described herein, one or more amplifiers (not shown) may be coupled to the electrical conductors 206. The amplifiers may pass one or more currents through the electrical conductors 206 to generate one or more external magnetic fields. A controller 300 may be coupled to the one or more amplifiers and send control signals to the one or more amplifiers. The control signals may be used to control the currents passed through the electrical conductors 206 by the one or more amplifiers. The currents controllably passed through each electrical conductor 206 may cause the electrical conductors 206 to generate or generate at least one external magnetic field. The at least one external magnetic field thus generated may generate a corresponding magnetic force that acts on the mover 100. The one or more external magnetic fields act on the drive magnets 110, thereby moving the mover 100 relative to the stator 200 across the work surface. The mobile body 100 is capable of controllable movement of at least two degrees of freedom (2-DOF), which may include, but is not limited to, controllable movement of three degrees of freedom in a plane (3-DOF) and controllable movement of six degrees of freedom (6-DOF).

[0044] In some embodiments, the magnetic force associated with the interaction of the magnetic field generated by the current in the electrical conductors 206 with the magnetic field associated with the drive magnets 110 may attract the mobile unit 100 to the stator 200 at all times when the controller is controlling the current driven by the one or more amplifiers. In other embodiments, the magnetic force associated with the interaction of the magnetic field generated by the current in the electrical conductors 206 with the magnetic field associated with the drive magnets 110 may act to move the mobile unit 100 away from the stator 200, always balancing the force of gravity through the gap 52.

[0045] In some embodiments, the gap 52 between the mover 100 and the stator 200 may be maintained by an air bearing or a compressed fluid bearing. It is understood that in some embodiments, the gap 52 may be zero, such as when the mover 100 operates in a contact mode. The contact mode may include a contact medium, such as a sliding bearing and / or a rolling bearing, between the mover 100 and the work surface 204.

[0046] As noted above, the mover 100 may operate in a "levitation mode," levitating near the working surface 204 of the stator 200 and operating without contacting the stator 200. In the levitation mode, the mover 100 may move along the X and Y directions on the working surface 204 of the stator 200, where X and Y are two non-parallel (e.g., perpendicular) directions within the working surface 204. It will be appreciated that the gap 52 between the working surface 204 and the bottom surface of the mover 100 is generally much smaller than the lateral dimensions of the mover (i.e., the dimensions in the X and Y directions).

[0047] The mobile unit 100 may be capable of six degrees of freedom (DOF) controllable movement, although such capability may not be necessary in all situations. In certain embodiments, levitation of the mobile unit 100 is not required, and the mobile unit's ability to carry heavy loads may be desirable. In such embodiments, the mobile unit 100 may be positioned on a work surface 204 supported by mechanical bearings (e.g., planar plain bearings and / or ball transfer units) and is capable of three degrees of freedom (3-DOF) controllable movement in a plane: translation in the X and Y directions and rotation about the Z direction, where X and Y are two non-parallel (e.g., orthogonal) directions on the work surface 204, and Z is a direction perpendicular to the work surface 204. When the mobile unit 100 relies on plain and / or rotational bearings for support on the work surface 204 and is capable of three degrees of freedom (3-DOF) controllable movement, it may be referred to as operating in a "3-DOF controlled sitting mode."

[0048] In some embodiments, the vehicle 100 is capable of in-plane three-degree-of-freedom controllable motion (translation along the X and Y axes and rotation about the Z axis) operating in a levitation mode without contact with the work surface 204. In this mode, the Z translation, X rotation, and Y rotation (and associated degrees of freedom) of the vehicle 100 can be controlled open-loop without feedback using suitable passive levitation techniques. When the vehicle 100 is capable of three-degree-of-freedom (3-DOF) controllable motion without contact with the stator 200, the state is sometimes referred to as a "3-DOF controlled levitation mode."

[0049] 2 and 3, a specific, non-limiting embodiment of the movement system 50 shown in FIG. 1 is shown, which includes the mover 100 and the stator 200, as described above. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the mover 100 includes a drive magnet assembly 110 having a plurality of small drive magnets 111 fixed or attached to a frame 120. More specifically, the drive magnet assembly 110 includes drive magnets 111A, 111B, 111C, 111D, 111E, 111F, 111G, 111H, 111I, 111J, 111K, 111L, 111M, 111N, 111O, 111P, 111Q, 111R, 111S, 111T, 111U, 111V, 111W, and 111X. The drive magnet assembly 110 also includes a plurality of magnetized regions 112. More specifically, drive magnet assembly 110 includes magnetized regions 112A, 112B, 112C, 112D, 112E, 112F, 112G, 112H, 112I, 112J, 112K, 112L, 112M, 112N, 112O, 112P, 112Q, 112R, 112S, 112T, 112U, 112V, 112W, and 112X. Each of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 has a corresponding magnetization direction. For example, the magnetization direction of magnetized region 112A has its north pointing out of the page (i.e., in the positive Z direction), while the magnetization direction of magnetized region 112B has its north pointing in the plane of the page (i.e., in the XY plane), and magnetized region 112C has its north pointing in to the page (i.e., in the negative Z direction), and therefore its south pointing out of the page. Generally, in the illustrated example, adjacent magnetized regions have different magnetization directions. However, in other embodiments, some adjacent magnetized regions may have the same magnetization direction.

[0050] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , each magnetized region 112 corresponds to a respective one of the plurality of drive magnets 111. That is, each magnetized region 112 includes a respective one of the plurality of drive magnets 111. For example, magnetized region 112A includes drive magnet 111A, magnetized region 112B includes drive magnet 111B, and magnetized region 112C includes drive magnet 111C. However, this may be different in other embodiments. For example, in some other embodiments, a single magnetized region may include a plurality of the plurality of drive magnets 111. Similarly, in some other embodiments, each magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 may include a plurality of the plurality of drive magnets 111. That is, although each drive magnet 111 is shown as a single component in FIGS. 2 and 3 , it will be understood that multiple small magnets can be combined to form the same shape to achieve the same magnetic effect, which may be done for ease of manufacturing. Similarly, it will be appreciated that multiple drive magnets 111 having different magnetizations may be fabricated as a single multi-pole magnet to simplify assembly.

[0051] The multiple magnetized regions 112 (and therefore the multiple drive magnets 111) are rotationally arranged around a reference point 103 of the moving body 100. More specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, the magnetized regions 112 are arranged in a circumferential pattern that forms a ring or toroid shape surrounding the reference point 103, with adjacent magnetized regions in the circumferential direction being separated by a constant angular pitch 101 relative to the reference point 103. That is, the angular pitch 101 is the angle between adjacent magnetized regions relative to the reference point 103. In the arrangement of the illustrated embodiment, multiple non-overlapping (i.e., unique) paths extend from the reference point 103 to the outer surface 105 of the multiple magnetized regions 112, sandwiching between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the multiple magnetized regions 112, with each magnetized region in each pair having a different magnetization direction. That is, because the paths do not overlap, no two paths intervene between the same pair of adjacent magnetized regions. For example, path 104A extends from reference point 103 to outer surface 105, interposing between magnetized region 112I and magnetized region 112J, where magnetized regions 112I and 112J have different magnetization directions. Similarly, path 104B extends from reference point 103 to outer surface 105, interposing between magnetized region 112J and magnetized region 112K; path 104C extends from reference point 103 to outer surface 105, interposing between magnetized region 112K and magnetized region 112L; path 104D extends from reference point 103 to outer surface 105, interposing between magnetized region 112L and magnetized region 112M; and path 104E extends from reference point 103 to outer surface 105, interposing between magnetized region 112M and magnetized region 112N. In the illustrated embodiment, each of these non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point 103 and the outer surface 105. That is, each path extends radially outward for its entire length. Overall, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, 24 non-overlapping paths extend from the reference point 103 to the outer surface 105 by interposing between different pairs of adjacent magnetized regions, each having a different magnetization direction. However, this may be different in other embodiments. For example, in some other embodiments, five non-overlapping paths may extend from the reference point 103 to the outer surface 105 by interposing between different pairs of adjacent magnetized regions, each having a different magnetization direction.In some other examples, there may be, for example, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 16, or 20 such non-overlapping paths. Furthermore, in the illustrated example, the non-overlapping paths may be considered to lie on a common plane (i.e., on the XY plane). However, in other embodiments, such non-overlapping paths may not lie on a common plane.

[0052] The outer surface 105 of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 is defined, for example, by a convex hull of the plurality of magnetized regions 112. In the illustrated embodiment, the outer surface 105 is substantially circular in the XY plane. However, other embodiments may differ. For example, in some other embodiments, the outer surface 105 is substantially elliptical in the XY plane (see, for example, FIG. 6 ). Meanwhile, in other embodiments, the outer surface 105 may be curved rather than circular or elliptical.

[0053] As noted above, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , adjacent magnetized regions 112 have different magnetization directions. More specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, the magnetized regions 112 are arranged in a circumferentially repeating pattern according to their magnetization directions. That is, as one passes through each of the magnetized regions 112 along a repeating path that circulates around the XY plane while maintaining a constant distance from the reference point 103, adjacent magnetized regions have sequentially different magnetization directions according to the repeating pattern. Adjacent magnetized regions with the same magnetization direction are separated by a fixed angular period 102 relative to the reference point 103. (Although FIG. 2 shows the angular period 102 as being between two magnetized regions whose magnetization directions point north out of the page, the angular period 102 can be equivalently defined as the period between any pair of adjacent magnetized regions having the same relative magnetization.) In the illustrated embodiment, the repeating pattern of the magnetized regions 112 forms a generally circular Halbach array.

[0054] 2 and 3, the stator 200 includes a plurality of electrical conductors 206 arranged in a non-circular configuration to generate an external magnetic field and drive the moving body 100 with up to six degrees of freedom (including rotation). In the illustrated embodiment, the plurality of electrical conductors 206 includes a plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction and a plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction. The plurality of electrical conductors 206X extend in the X direction and are spaced apart from one another in the Y direction by a generally constant, fixed interval in the Y direction. Similarly, the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y extend in the Y direction and are spaced apart from one another in the X direction by a generally constant, fixed interval in the X direction. In the illustrated embodiment, the fixed interval in the Y direction of the electrical conductors 206X is substantially equal to the fixed interval in the X direction of the electrical conductors 206Y. Therefore, in the example illustrated in FIG. 3, the plurality of electrical conductors 206 are arranged approximately along a two-dimensional Cartesian lattice spacing. However, in other embodiments, the electrical conductors 206 may be arranged along different types of grid configurations, such as different rectilinear grid configurations, diamond grid configurations, or triangular grid configurations.

[0055] The electrical conductor 206 rotates the moving body 100 in the XY plane around an axis in the Z direction (i.e., R Z When the moving object rotates (causing rotational motion), the repeating circumferential pattern of magnetized regions 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110 rotates at different R Z Used to generate a uniform driving force when rotated into a rotational position, this arrangement of magnetized regions can improve performance over a linear magnet arrangement over the full range of rotation about the Z axis.

[0056] While the plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction and the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction are contiguous in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 , it is understood that in other embodiments, individual electrical conductors of the plurality of electrical conductors 206X and 206Y may be divided into independently controllable elements. Thus, for example, in some embodiments, the plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction may effectively include electrical conductors that are spaced apart from one another in the X direction as well as the Y direction. Similarly, in some embodiments, the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction may effectively include electrical conductors that are spaced apart from one another in the Y direction as well as the X direction. In some embodiments, the pitch in the X direction of the plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction may be substantially equal to the pitch in the Y direction of the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction. When the electrical conductors are divided in this way in the X or Y direction, it is possible to generate an external magnetic field by controlling the subset of electrical conductors that overlap each side, allowing for independent control of opposite sides of the magnetized regions 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110, and therefore both sides of the mobile body 100. When the +X and -X sides of the mobile body 100 are each controlled by an independent set of conductors 206X arranged in the X direction, and the +Y and -Y sides are each controlled by an independent set of conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction, the R Z During motion, it is possible to minimize control coupling between two different sides of the mobile unit 100. In some embodiments, the electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction may be shorter than the average diameter of the magnetized regions 112, such that a sector of the conductor exclusively controls either the +X or −X side of the mobile unit 100 (with minimal or no overlap on the opposite sides) and operates at the full range of possible X positions. Similarly, in some embodiments, the electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction may be shorter than the average diameter of the magnetized regions 112, such that a sector of the conductor exclusively controls either the +Y or −Y side of the mobile unit 100 (with minimal or no overlap on the opposite sides) and operates at the full range of possible Y positions.

[0057] Referring to FIG. 4, another non-limiting embodiment of the moving system 50 shown in FIG. 1 is shown, which includes a moving body 100 and a stator 200, as described above. The embodiment of FIG. 4 is similar to the embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3, except that in the stator 200 of the embodiment of FIG. 4, the conductors arranged in the X direction of the plurality of electrical conductors 206X are divided into conductor elements 206X1, 206X2, and 206X3. For clarity, the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction are not shown in FIG. 4. Each of the conductor elements 206X1, 206X2, and 206X3 arranged in the X direction has a fixed conductor element length 151 in the X direction. Similar to the embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3, the moving body 100 of FIG. 4 includes a plurality of magnetized regions 112 that form a ring or toroidal shape around the reference point 103. As shown in FIG. 4, the ring / toroid of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 has an inner diameter 150 and an outer diameter 154. Thus, the plurality of magnetized regions 112 (and corresponding drive magnet assembly 110) can be considered to be radially bounded by a pair of concentric cylindrical surfaces having an axis passing through reference point 103. Specifically, an inner cylindrical surface at inner diameter 150 and an outer cylindrical surface at outer diameter 154. Based on the dimensions and relative positions of the plurality of electrical conductors 206 and the plurality of magnetized regions 112, it is also possible to define an utilized magnetic width 153 and a minimum chord length 152. The utilized magnetic width 153 is defined as the total extent or width of the electrical conductors 206 used to interact with and control one side of the plurality of magnetized regions 112. The minimum chord length 152 is defined geometrically using the Pythagorean theorem. Specifically, TIFF2026508167000002.tif6150, where L is the minimum chord length 152, D is the inner diameter 150 of the plurality of magnetized regions 112, and W is the width 153 of the magnet used.

[0058] Due to the subdivision of the multiple electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction, the conductor elements 206X1 and 206X2 can independently control the -X and +X sides of the mobile body 100, respectively. To enable such independent control at all X positions of the mobile body 100, the conductor element length 151 generally needs to be shorter than the minimum chord length 152. However, partial independent control may be possible when the conductor element length 151 is shorter than the inner diameter 150 of the multiple magnetized regions 112 or when the conductor element length 151 is shorter than the outer diameter 154 of the multiple magnetized regions 112. In other words, such control may be possible when the inner diameter 150, or at least the outer diameter 154, is larger than the conductor element length 151. For example, in some embodiments, the inner diameter 150 may be greater than 80% of the conductor element length 151 or greater than 90% of the conductor element length 151. It will also be understood that symmetry imposes similar constraints on how finely the conductors arranged in the Y direction of the multiple electrical conductors 206Y must be divided to enable independent control of the -Y and +Y sides of the moving body 100 at all Y positions of the moving body 100.

[0059] In some embodiments, the conductor element length 151 is limited by the design of the stator 200. In these embodiments, such constraints on the conductor element length 151 are redefined as constraints on the minimum size of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110.

[0060] In many cases, for a particular value of the inner diameter 150 of the plurality of magnetized regions 112, increasing the outer diameter 154 of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 increases the total weight of the drive magnet 110 within the moving body 100. However, this also increases the variation between the inner and outer portions of the plurality of magnetized regions 112. For a given set of conductor elements 206X1 and 206X2 working together to generate a force on a particular side of the moving body 100, it may be desirable for the majority of the magnetized regions used to generate the force to have a magnetic pitch / spacing in the direction of the conductor distribution / spacing (typically perpendicular to the direction of conductor extension) that corresponds to the conductor spacing. In toroidal magnetized regions, such as the plurality of magnetized regions 112 in the examples of FIGS. 2, 3, and 4, the magnetic pitch is substantially defined by the angular pitch 102. However, due to the tapered shape of the magnetized regions in such embodiments, the magnetic pitch is expected to be larger in the outer portions of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 and smaller in the inner portions. Specifically, the magnetic pitch increases with increasing distance from the center (i.e., reference point 103) of the plurality of magnetized regions 112. Thus, to achieve a particular nominal / average magnetic pitch in the plurality of magnetized regions 112 perpendicular to the radial direction, the outer diameter 154 and inner diameter 150 may be selected such that the magnetic pitch in the inner portions of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 is smaller than the desired value, while the magnetic pitch in the outer portions of the plurality of magnetized regions 112 is larger than the desired value, thereby ensuring that the desired magnetic pitch appears near the radial center of the effective magnet area used to generate force by the conductor 206 in that particular region.

[0061] Referring to FIG. 5, another non-limiting embodiment of the moving system 50 shown in FIG. 1 is shown, including a moving body 100 and a stator 200, as described above. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, the moving body 100 includes a plurality of magnetized regions connected by a frame 120. More specifically, the moving body includes an inner primary magnetized region plurality 112 similar to the plurality of magnetized regions 112 in the embodiments of FIGS. 2, 3, and 4, and an outer secondary magnetized region plurality 121 similar to but larger than the primary magnetized region plurality 112. Each of the primary magnetized region plurality 112 and the secondary magnetized region plurality 121 is generally distributed rotationally about a reference point 103, forming a ring-like or toroidal shape. Because of the distribution about the reference point 103, the primary magnetized region plurality 112 is coaxial with the secondary magnetized region plurality 121. Additionally, the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 is radially spaced from the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121 by an inter-ring spacing 155. The use of multiple concentric rings / toroids may increase the payload capacity of the vehicle 100. While the illustrated embodiment includes two rings / toroids of magnetized regions, other embodiments may include more rings / toroids to further increase the payload capacity. It will also be appreciated that the two plurality of magnetized regions 112 and 121 may have different angular pitches 101 and angular periods 102 (not shown).

[0062] 5 includes a plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction and a plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction. The electrical conductors arranged in the X direction of the plurality of electrical conductors 206X have conductor element lengths 151X, and the electrical conductors arranged in the Y direction of the plurality of electrical conductors 206Y have conductor element lengths 151Y. For clarity, however, FIG. 5 shows only electrical conductors capable of applying a significant force to the moving body 100. In general, because the size of the plurality of secondary magnetized regions 121 is larger than the size of the plurality of primary magnetized regions 112, a greater number of electrical conductors may apply force to the plurality of secondary magnetized regions 121 than to the plurality of primary magnetized regions 112.

[0063] The primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 and the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121 may have different angular pitches 101, and it is generally desirable to be able to control the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 independently from the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121, thereby allowing all R Z This allows for efficient force generation at the rotational position. Independent control of the primary and secondary magnetized regions 112 and 121 can be achieved by designing the spacing 155 between the rings to be greater than the conductor element lengths 151X and 151Y. Partially independent control of the magnet assemblies 112A and 112B can be achieved by designing the spacing 155 between the rings to be not significantly smaller than the conductor element lengths 151X and 151Y. For example, in some embodiments, the spacing 155 between the rings can be greater than 50% of the smaller of the conductor element lengths 151X and 151Y.

[0064] In some embodiments, the particular angular pitch 101 of the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 and the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121, their relative orientations, and inter-ring spacing 155 may be selected to promote compound force generation when the inter-ring spacing 155 is shorter than the conductor element lengths 151X / 151Y. To facilitate this force generation, the number of magnetized regions in the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121 may be selected to be an integer multiple of the number of magnetized regions in the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112. The inter-ring spacing 155 may be selected so that the magnetic pitch extending along a line perpendicular to the radial direction is similar in each of the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 and the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121. Furthermore, at least one magnetic region in the primary plurality of magnetic regions 112 having a particular magnetic direction (e.g., north out of the page) may be aligned to coincide with a magnetic region in the secondary plurality of magnetic regions 121 having the same magnetic direction. With appropriate angular spacing, spacing 155 between the rings, and alignment between the rings, an electrical conductor overlapping both the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 and the secondary plurality of magnetized regions 121 may generate a constructive force on both plurality of magnetized regions.

[0065] FIG. 6 illustrates a non-limiting example of the vehicle 100 of the vehicle system 50 shown in FIG. 1 . In this example, the vehicle 100 includes a drive magnet assembly 110 that includes multiple non-uniform small drive magnets 111. Such an example may improve performance in some directions, but at the expense of reduced performance in other directions. For example, in the example shown, there is a longer drive magnet 111 aligned parallel to the Y axis, which generates a larger force in the X direction and a relatively smaller force in the Y direction. Therefore, this example may perform better in the X direction than in the Y direction.

[0066] 2, 3, 4, and 6, the magnetized region 112 is generally wedge-shaped, but may be a different shape in other embodiments. For example, some alternative embodiments may include a magnetized region that does not have rotational symmetry, or that is not generally rectilinear or parallelepipedal. In some alternative embodiments, at least a portion of the surface of the magnetized region may not be parallel or perpendicular to at least another portion of the surface of the magnetized region.

[0067] Referring to FIG. 7, another non-limiting embodiment of the movement system 50 shown in FIG. 1 is shown, which includes a mover 100 and a stator 200, as described above. The embodiment of FIG. 7 is a variation of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in which the mover 100 has a drive magnet assembly 110 including a plurality of tilted magnetized regions 112. The tilted magnetized regions 112 are generally tilted relative to a radial direction from a reference point 103. Due to this tilt, boundary regions between adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of tilted magnetized regions 112 are positioned such that each boundary region intersects a line passing through the reference point 103 and a line passing through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions enclosed by the boundary region. For example, the boundary region 113 between the tilted magnetized regions 112A and 112B intersects with a line 106 passing through the reference point 103 and each of the magnetized regions 112A and 112B at an intersection point 107. In the illustrated embodiment, substantially the entirety of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects with a line that passes through reference point 103 and at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions enclosed by the boundary region. However, this may differ in other embodiments. For example, in some alternative embodiments, only a portion of each boundary may intersect with a line that passes through reference point 103 in this manner. In other alternative embodiments, only a portion of the boundary between adjacent magnetized regions may intersect with a line that passes through reference point 103 in this manner.

[0068] As shown in FIG. 7 , each tilted magnetization region 112 includes a centerline that extends approximately equally spaced between two adjacent paths of at least five non-overlapping paths that bound that tilted magnetization region 112. For example, magnetization region 112C includes centerline 108. The centerline of each tilted magnetization region 112 intersects a line through reference point 103 (i.e., a radius from reference point 103) at a non-zero tilt angle. For example, centerline 108 of magnetization region 112C intersects line 109 drawn from reference point 103 at tilt angle 116. In the illustrated embodiment, the centerlines of the tilted magnetization regions 112 are generally straight; however, this may vary in other embodiments. For example, in some alternative embodiments, the tilted magnetization regions may have centerlines that are partially or entirely curved or arcuate.

[0069] 2 and 3, the stator 200 of FIG. 7 includes a plurality of electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction and a plurality of electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction. In operation, the electrical conductors 206X and 206Y may be used to control sections of the drive magnet assembly 110 (i.e., magnetized regions 112) that are generally aligned with their corresponding conductors. In some embodiments, the drive magnet assembly 110 is controlled by four conductor subsets: two conductor subsets 206X arranged in the X direction and two conductor subsets 206Y arranged in the Y direction. Synchronous control of all of these conductor subsets allows for control of the Z axis (i.e., the R axis). Z It is possible to generate up to six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) of motion, including complete rotation around the circumferential axis, where the circumferentially repeating pattern of magnetized regions 112 creates a generally consistent control relationship throughout the rotation of the moving body 100.

[0070] Similar to the embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3 , the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 in FIG. 7 are arranged in a generally annular or toroidal configuration. Thus, each portion of the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 is primarily controlled by a particular overlapping region of the X-direction-oriented conductors 206X or Y-direction-oriented conductors 206Y within that region. For example, a portion of the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 within region 225A may be primarily controlled by the X-direction-oriented conductors 206X that overlap that region, and similarly, a portion of the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 within region 225C may be primarily controlled by the overlapping X-direction-oriented conductors 206X. Similarly, portions of the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 that overlap regions 225B and 225D may be primarily controlled by the overlapping Y-direction-oriented conductors 206Y. In some embodiments, a sufficiently large tilt angle can clearly separate the subsets of drive conductors used by opposing regions of the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112. In embodiments where all main drive conductor regions are clearly separated from one another, longer conductors can be used to drive a single mover without significant trade-off in drive performance.

[0071] In some embodiments (not shown), the tilted magnetized region 112 may include multiple drive magnets 111, for example, a combination of wedge-shaped magnet pieces and other generally rectangular magnet pieces. In some embodiments, the wedge-shaped magnet pieces may alternate with the generally rectangular magnet pieces.

[0072] Figure 8 shows a non-limiting example of the mover 100 of the movement system 50 of Figure 7. The mover 100 shown in Figure 8 includes a drive magnet assembly 110 with only two orientations of magnetized regions (north-facing in the +Z direction and south-facing in the +Z direction). While the strength of the magnetic field generated in this example may be reduced compared to using, for example, a Halbach array arrangement (its strong magnetic field side) as shown in Figure 7, the example of Figure 8 may reduce complexity.

[0073] 9 shows a specific embodiment of a vehicle 100 with a drive magnet assembly 110 having an inner primary plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 similar to the plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112 in the embodiment of FIG. 7, and an outer secondary plurality of tilted magnetization regions 121 similar to but larger than the inner primary plurality of tilted magnetization regions 112. The outer secondary plurality of tilted magnetization regions 121 may have a tilt angle different from the tilt angle of the outer secondary plurality of tilted magnetization regions 121. The use of two concentric plurality of tilted magnetization regions (which may be rotationally offset from one another) allows for a greater R Z A magnetic pattern may be created that provides more uniform control of the magnetized area over a wider range of positions. Additionally, using multiple tilt angles can create a curvilinear effect in the magnetic field pattern, which may benefit control over different positions and layouts. For example, X, Y, and R Z The benefit is that it reduces the worst case scenario for all positions in the direction.

[0074] In the embodiment shown in Figure 9, both concentric magnetized regions have a tilted magnetized region arrangement, but this may be different in other embodiments. For example, in some alternative embodiments, one or both rings may include only radially arranged magnets (e.g., as shown in Figures 2 and 3). Furthermore, in some alternative embodiments, more than one concentric circle of magnetized regions may be included. As shown in Figure 9, a rotational offset between the inner and outer rings may be used to achieve the desired magnetic field.

[0075] 10 and 11 show two examples of a mover 100, each including a drive magnet assembly 110 including a primary plurality of magnetized regions 112, which may be similar to the primary plurality of magnetized regions 112 in the examples of FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and / or 7, and a secondary linear plurality of magnetized regions 122, 123, 124, and 125. In some examples, each of the secondary linear plurality of magnetized regions 122, 123, 124, and 125 may be arranged in a linear grid. In some such embodiments, the linear grid may be one-dimensional, i.e., form a linear array of magnetized regions. In some such embodiments, the secondary linear magnetized regions 122, 123, 124, and 125 may be rotationally arranged with respect to each other in rotationally adjacent linear arrays, e.g., offset by 90 degrees (e.g., arrays 122 and 124 in the Y direction and arrays 123 and 125 in the X direction). Using such hybrid magnetized region arrangements may allow for faster in-plane motion in certain directions of the mover 100 (e.g., 0, 90, 180, 270 degrees), at the expense of less efficient rotational motion. While the hybrid mover embodiments shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 have physically connected arrays of circumferential and linear magnetized regions, it is understood that this is not required, and in alternative embodiments, the arrays of linear magnetized regions may be distinctly separated (but connected via the mover frame 120) or entirely rectangular in shape.

[0076] FIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate another embodiment of a moving body 100 with a drive magnet assembly 110 including primary magnetized regions 112, which may be similar to the magnetized regions 112 in the embodiments of FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and / or 7, and secondary linear magnetized regions 122, 123, which may be similar to the magnetized regions 122, 123, 124, and 125 in the embodiments of FIGS. 10 and 11. The magnetized regions 112, 122, and 123 are collectively connected by a frame 120. In FIG. 13, the moving body is shown carrying a load 400 having a cantilevered center of gravity 401. The hybrid magnet arrangement of this embodiment may improve the performance of some loads, such as loads with significantly offset centers of gravity and / or cantilevered loads.

[0077] Furthermore, using a hybrid magnetization region arrangement such as that shown in Figures 10-13 can provide higher operating efficiency in certain typical operating directions, but at the expense of reduced performance in certain other operating directions, which may be desirable if most of the motion occurs in a particular orientation (e.g., 90 degree orientations coinciding with the X and Y directions).

[0078] 14 and 15 show two exemplary magnetization region arrays 112 that include different variations in the placement and shape of the drive magnets that make up each of the magnetization regions in each array. In FIGS. 14 and 15, the drive magnet 111 is shown relative to a coordinate system aligned with the length direction R' of the drive magnet 111 (e.g., representing a linear length, a radius from a circle, or a skewed radial length), the width Ψ' of the magnetization region pattern (e.g., which may represent a linear width, a circumferential direction, or a tilted circumferential direction), and the vertical axis Z. In FIG. 14, the magnetization region array 112 has a larger drive magnet piece 111A (thicker in the Z direction and / or wider in the Ψ' direction) and a smaller drive magnet piece 111B (thinner in the Z direction and / or narrower in the Ψ' direction) arranged together. The drive magnet 111A may be larger in one dimension and smaller in the other dimension, e.g., thick in the Z direction and narrow in the Ψ' direction. By using both large and small drive magnet pieces 111A and 111B, the magnetic field of the magnetized region array 112 can be selectively altered by strengthening or weakening the magnetic field in different regions. Furthermore, the spacing 115 between adjacent drive magnet pieces may be utilized in constructing the array for manufacturability or other reasons. Furthermore, in FIG. 15 , the large and small magnetic segments 111A / 111B are trapezoidal in shape. It will be appreciated that other embodiments may include shapes other than rectangular, such as circular or other curved shapes. In some cases, using trapezoidal magnets or other non-rectangular shapes may improve the magnetic field pattern for certain applications (e.g., increasing the peak magnetic field strength on the strong magnetic field side of the pattern).

[0079] 16 and 17 show two non-limiting examples of a moving body 100 having an arrangement of tilted magnetized regions similar to the embodiments of FIG. 7 or 8. In FIGS. 16 and 17, the moving body 100 comprises a drive magnet assembly 110 including an array of tilted magnetized regions 131, 132, 133, and 134 made up of four segments held by a frame 120. Each segment is rotationally fixed at an angle, such as 90 degrees, relative to the adjacent segment. This arrangement of the magnetized regions allows the moving body 100 to rotate in a RZ Positions near 0, 90, 180, and 270 degrees allow for efficient force generation, and movement near these "standard" angular positions (particularly in-plane movement, but up to six degrees of freedom) may be considered typical operation for this mover embodiment. Furthermore, for large rotational movements between standard angular positions about the vertical axis, mover 100 may have improved functionality over a standard arrangement of magnetized regions by having multiple regions with different magnetic pitches that effectively align with the stator conductors at specific positions. Vertical rotational position R Z 16 and 17, partitions are provided between adjacent magnetized region arrays 131, 132, 133, and 134, but in some alternative embodiments, such magnetized region arrays may contact each other, with boundary magnets shaped to conform to the shape of the adjacent magnetized region arrays.

[0080] FIG. 18 shows another non-limiting example of a moving body 100 including a drive magnet assembly 110 having multiple rectangular drive magnets 111 arranged in a tilted radial pattern. Each drive magnet 111 has a specific magnetization direction and generally corresponds to a respective magnetized region 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110. The drive magnets 111 may be arranged in a Halbach array pattern, for example, to generate a large magnetic field at the bottom surface of the moving body 100. While the use of rectangular drive magnets can be beneficial for manufacturability, large gaps between adjacent tilted drive magnets 111 may reduce efficiency. Using such rectangular drive magnets may also limit design flexibility in the magnetic field generated by the drive magnets 111.

[0081] In some embodiments, the tilted magnet array has a variable magnetic pitch along its length (in the width or Ψ' direction), and the specific size and placement of the magnetic components 111 may be selected to create an ideal magnetic pitch that matches the stator conductor placement within the array. In some embodiments, the ideal magnetic pitch may occur near the middle of the array.

[0082] 19 and 20 show a non-limiting example of a moving body 100 that includes a drive magnet assembly 110 having a plurality of drive magnets 111 with a generally tilted and curved shape. Each drive magnet 111 has a specific magnetization direction that generally corresponds to a magnetized region 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110. Magnets indicated by arrows (e.g., drive magnet 111A) are magnetized in the corresponding direction. Magnets marked with an X (cross) (e.g., drive magnets 111B and 111C) are magnetized inward (i.e., in the -Z direction). Magnets marked with a circle and dot (e.g., drive magnet 111D) are magnetized outward (i.e., in the +Z direction) from the page.

[0083] In some examples, drive magnet assembly 110 may be rotationally symmetric. That is, in such embodiments, drive magnet assembly 110 may appear identical after being rotated less than one revolution about its center at reference point 103. In some such embodiments, drive magnet assembly 110 may be a rotationally symmetric structure having a period equal to angular period 102. In some examples, drive magnet assembly 110 may be rotationally antisymmetric. That is, in such embodiments, the magnetization of drive magnet 111 of drive magnet assembly 110 may appear to reverse when drive magnet assembly 110 is rotated less than one revolution about its center at reference point 103, resulting in the magnetic field generated by drive magnet assembly 110 being reversed at all points. In general, the rotational symmetry and rotational antisymmetry of the drive magnet assembly 110 may have the effect of simplifying sensing and control, as sensing and control algorithms may take advantage of the symmetry to reduce the substantial complexity of various configurations of the moving body 100.

[0084] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 19 , drive magnet assembly 110 has both rotational symmetry and rotational antisymmetry. More specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, drive magnet assembly 110 has fourth-order rotational symmetry (i.e., drive magnet assembly 110 exhibits the same shape after a quarter-turn rotation). However, in alternative embodiments, the quarter-turn drive magnet assembly may have lower or higher orders of rotational symmetry than four. Also, in the illustrated embodiment, drive magnet assembly 110 does not have rotational antisymmetry at exactly half the angular period 102. That is, rotating drive magnet assembly 110 about reference point 103 through half the angular period 102 reverses the magnetic field generated by drive magnet assembly 110 at all points. It will be understood that in other embodiments, antisymmetry may occur at periods other than half the angular period 102. It will also be understood that even if an embodiment is not rotationally symmetric, it may still be substantially rotationally symmetric. Slight asymmetry may be introduced intentionally, for example to provide a way to detect absolute orientation, or may occur unintentionally due to manufacturing variations, etc. A structure with slight asymmetry may have most of the advantages of a structure with rotational symmetry.

[0085] It will be appreciated that rotational antisymmetry occurs in the drive magnet assembly 110 in the illustrated embodiment because the drive magnet assembly 110 has an even number of magnetized regions 112 (corresponding to an even number of respective drive magnets 111). More specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, there are four magnetized regions 112 per magnetic period 102. In general, exact rotational antisymmetry does not occur when there is an odd number of magnetized regions 112 per magnetic period 102. However, it will be appreciated that approximate rotational antisymmetry may still exist when there is an odd number of magnetized regions 112 per magnetic period 102. That is, in such an arrangement, when the drive magnet assembly 110 is rotated about the reference point 103, the magnetic field generated by the drive magnet assembly 110 may be substantially reversed at all points.

[0086] In the illustrated embodiment, the drive magnets 111 and their corresponding magnetized regions 112 may be grouped into multiple magnet fingers 114, with each magnet finger 114 including one or more drive magnets 111 forming a contiguous set of magnets from an inner boundary 128 to an outer boundary 129 of the drive magnet assembly 110. (The outer boundary 129 generally corresponds to the perimeter 105 of the magnetized regions 112 of the drive magnet assembly 110.) For example, magnet finger 114E includes drive magnets 111E1, 111E2, and 111E3, and magnet finger 114F includes drive magnet 111F1. It will be understood that the geometry of the drive magnet assembly 110 is defined by the geometries of all of the magnet fingers 114.

[0087] It will also be appreciated that defining the geometry of the magnetic fingers 114 as generally curved surfaces allows for fine-tuning geometric optimization to maximize or minimize desired performance metrics of the mobile unit 100, such as minimizing the current required to levitate a particular load. For magnetic fingers 114 that include horizontally (i.e., in the XY plane) magnetized actuation magnets 111, such as magnetic finger 114E that includes horizontally magnetized drive magnets 111E1, 111E2, and 111E3, it will be appreciated that dividing the magnetic finger 114 into multiple drive magnets 111 provides additional degrees of freedom in geometric optimization. Specifically, adjusting the magnetization direction (generally horizontal) and the relative sizes of the drive magnets 111 allows for maximizing or minimizing desired performance metrics. However, the magnet finger 114 including the horizontally magnetized drive magnet 111 may also include only one drive magnet 111 (e.g., integrating the horizontally magnetized drive magnets 111E1, 111E2, and 111E3 into a single drive magnet), which may simplify assembly.

[0088] Furthermore, although a magnetic finger 114 including multiple horizontally magnetized drive magnets 111 having different magnetization directions in the horizontal (i.e., XY) plane may be considered to include multiple magnetized regions 112 because the constituent drive magnets 111 each have a different magnetization direction, such a magnetic finger 114 may also be considered to include only a single magnetized region 112 having a generally horizontal magnetization direction. For example, in magnetic finger 114E, drive magnets 111E1, 111E2, and 111E3 are each considered to correspond to a separate magnetized region 112, and thus magnetic finger 114E includes three magnetized regions 112. Alternatively, the three drive magnets 111E1, 111E2, and 111E3 may be considered to constitute a single magnetized region 112, in which case the magnetic finger 114E includes only a single magnetized region 112 having a magnetization direction in a horizontal plane (i.e., the XY plane) arranged around (i.e., circumferentially) the entire drive magnet assembly 110.

[0089] 2 and 3, the angular pitch 101 of the magnetized regions 112 may be defined as the angle between the centerlines of adjacent fingers, referenced to the center point of the magnetic assembly 110 at the reference point 103. Similarly, the angular period 102 of the magnetic fingers 114 may be defined as the angle between adjacent fingers 114 having the same magnetization, referenced to the center point of the magnetic assembly 110 at the reference point 103. It will be appreciated that in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the angular pitch 101 and angular period 102 are generally constant with respect to radial position.

[0090] In the embodiments shown in Figures 19 and 20, a magnetic finger 114 (e.g., magnetic finger 114F including drive magnet 111F1) that includes a drive magnet 111 magnetized in the vertical direction (i.e., the +Z direction or the -Z direction) generally includes only a single drive magnet 111, but it will be understood that in alternative embodiments, such a magnetic finger 114 can be divided into multiple drive magnets 111, for example to improve ease of manufacturing and assembly.

[0091] In the embodiment shown in Figures 19 and 20, the magnetic fingers 114 are generally separated into individual drive magnets 111 by straight lines, although it will be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, curved cutouts could be used, for example to improve ease of assembly or to provide additional degrees of freedom in geometric optimization.

[0092] In the embodiments shown in Figures 19 and 20, the drive magnets 111 are shown magnetized only in either the vertical or horizontal direction, but it will be appreciated that the drive magnets 111 may also be magnetized diagonally, radially, or in any direction in three-dimensional space, for example to provide greater freedom in design optimization or to improve manufacturability.

[0093] In FIG. 20 , the magnetization direction annotation has been removed for clarity. As shown in FIG. 20 , the geometry of a magnetic finger 114 may be parameterized by its tilt angle 116 as a function of radial distance from the center of the magnet assembly 110 at the reference point 103. Here, the tilt angle 116 is defined as the angle between a radial line passing through the reference point 103 and a line tangent to the centerline of the magnetic finger 114. For example, magnetic finger 114G has different tilt angles 116G1, 116G2, and 116G3 at different radii from the center of the magnet assembly 110. While three tilt angles 116 are shown for magnetic finger 114G in FIG. 20 , it will be understood that fewer or more tilt angles may be defined for any magnetic finger 114.

[0094] 20, the relative widths of the fingers 114 may be variable. For example, near the inner boundary 128, the width 117H1 of the finger 114H1 is significantly larger than the width 117H2 of the finger 114H2. Adjusting the relative widths of the fingers 114 may provide additional flexibility in geometric optimization.

[0095] It should be understood that while the width of the magnetic finger 114 may vary along its length, the width of the magnetic finger 114 may be generally uniform along its length. One advantage of the tilt angle is that the width of the drive magnet at a particular location may be shorter than the width measured perpendicular to the radial direction at the same radial location. A larger tilt angle may occupy a larger circumferential distance for the same width. Increasing the tilt angle at more outer radial locations of the magnet assembly may maintain the local width of the magnetic finger 114. One advantage of this characteristic is that it may create a larger area where the magnetic pitch is close to the desired value. In general, to achieve efficient force generation, it may be desirable to position a large percentage of the magnets so that they coincide with the coils extending in either the first direction (i.e., the X direction) or the second direction (i.e., the Y direction). Furthermore, it may be beneficial to generate force in those coils if the magnetic pitch of these effective areas closely matches the conductor spacing.

[0096] In some embodiments, the magnet fingers 114 that include drive magnets 111 with at least a horizontal component may change their magnetization direction approximately perpendicular to the tilt angle relative to the center of each drive magnet 111.

[0097] FIG. 20 illustrates that gaps 115 may be formed between adjacent magnetic fingers 114. Such gaps may be introduced, for example, to limit the curvature of the magnetic fingers 114 and / or their component drive magnets 111, improving manufacturability. Such gaps may also be introduced to reduce the weight of the moving body 100 or to improve performance characteristics of the moving body 100. Although FIG. 20 shows the gaps 115 only at the perimeter boundary 129 of the drive magnet assembly 110, the gaps 115 may be introduced at any point along the length of the magnetic fingers 114. Small gaps 115 between adjacent magnetic fingers 114 may also be used to facilitate bonding during manufacturing of the drive magnet assembly 110.

[0098] FIG. 21 illustrates the effect of introducing a tilt angle 116. On the left, the drive magnet assembly 110A includes a drive magnet 111 that is not tilted. As a result, the electrical conductors 206Y1 and 206Y2 are collinear. This imposes a limit on the maximum length of the electrical conductors 206Y1 and 206Y2 so that the -Y and +Y sides of the magnet assembly 110A can be independently controlled at all positions. On the other hand, on the right, the drive magnet assembly 110B includes a magnetic component 111 that includes a tilt angle 116. As a result, the electrical conductors 206Y3 and 206Y4 are not collinear. This allows for independent control of the two halves of the magnet assembly 110B using electrical conductors 206Y3 and 206Y4 that are longer than the outer diameter 154 of the magnet assembly 110B.

[0099] 22 shows the effect of using a drive magnet 111 with multiple tilt angles 116. By using a drive magnet 111 with multiple tilt angles 116, a single drive magnet 111 can be rotated in multiple R Z The drive magnet 111 can be approximately matched in value to the electrical conductor 206. In this demonstration, the drive magnet 111 has a single R Z The value of the electrical conductor 206Y1 is the same as that of the electrical conductor 206Y1, and the value of the electrical conductor 206Y2 is different from that of the electrical conductor 206Y1. Z It may be positioned to coincide in value with electrical conductor 206Y2.

[0100] 23 shows the embodiment of FIGS. 19 and 20, illustrating how the stator 200 can be controlled to interact with the moving body 100, specifically via a number of electrical conductors 206X and 206Y. The electrical conductor 206X, which is positioned in the X direction, provides the moving body 100 with electrical connections in the Y, Z, and R directions. X , R Y , and R Z The Y-direction electrical conductor 206Y may apply a force in the X, Z, and R directions to the moving body 100. X , R Y , and R Z23, the electrical conductor 206X arranged in the X direction generates a force mainly in the upper left region 160A and the lower right region 160C of the moving body 100, while the electrical conductor 206Y arranged in the Y direction generates a force mainly in the upper right region 160B and the lower left region 160D of the moving body 100. As a result, it may be useful to define a rotational coordinate axis 140. The electrical conductor 206X arranged in the X direction generally has a high ability to generate a moment about the axis 140X and a low ability to generate a moment about the axis 140Y. The electrical conductor 206Y arranged in the Y direction generally has a high ability to generate a moment about the axis 140Y and a low ability to generate a moment about the axis 140X.

[0101] Because regions 160A and 160C are offset from one another in the Y direction, the electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction may exert forces independently in these regions, and it may not be necessary to divide the electrical conductors 206X arranged in the X direction along their lengths. Similarly, because regions 160B and 160D are offset from one another in the X direction, the electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction may exert forces independently in these regions, and it may not be necessary to divide the electrical conductors 206Y arranged in the Y direction along their lengths. As a result, the inner diameter 150 of the drive magnet assembly 110 may not be immediately constrained. In particular, the inner diameter 150 may be significantly smaller than the length of the electrical conductors 206. It should be understood that while some regions may be better able to generate forces using conductors arranged in a particular X or Y direction, it is possible to generate forces using other sets of conductors; however, efficiency and output may be reduced.

[0102] 24 to 27 may help explain why a mover 100 with tilted magnetized regions / drive magnets provides improved performance at variable rotation angles.

[0103] FIG. 24 illustrates a moving body 100 equipped with a drive magnet assembly 110 including a Halbach array. Plot 500 is obtained by integrating the magnetic field beneath moving body 100 along dashed line 502 at many X positions, resulting in plot line 503A. Because the force generated when current flows through an electromagnetic coil is generally proportional to the magnetic field, plot 500 may serve as an indicator of the amount of force generated by one unit of current in an electrical conductor. Note that a magnetic field is a three-dimensional vector field. Plot 500 only shows the integration result of the Z component of the magnetic field, which corresponds to force generation in the X direction. However, it will be appreciated that a similar graph with similar characteristics can be generated for Z force generation corresponding to the directional X component of the magnetic field. Plot line 501 is the X axis of plot 500 and represents the integrated magnetic field at zero. Furthermore, a similar graph for force generation in the Y direction can be generated by integrating along various Y positions.

[0104] Since electrical conductors are typically designed to output current in a sinusoidal pattern relative to lateral position, it will be appreciated that to maximize force generation, plot line 503A will be generally sinusoidal in shape, coincident with the coil's period 504, and have a high amplitude 505. As shown in Figure 24, plot line 503A has these characteristics when the mobile object 100 is aligned with the coil (i.e., not rotating).

[0105] FIG. 25 shows the same moving object 100 as in FIG. 24, but with R Z25 shows a non-negligible rotation in the Z-direction (i.e., rotation about the Z-axis). Plot 500 in FIG. 25 is generated in a manner similar to that of FIG. 24. It will be appreciated that amplitude 505 of plot line 503B is much smaller than the amplitude of plot line 503A. It will also be appreciated that period 504 of plot line 503B is different from the period of plot line 503A (i.e., period 504 of plot line 503B does not match the period of the coil). This, as shown in FIG. 25, indicates that it can be very difficult to generate a force on the moving body 100. Due to this difficulty in generating force, a very large current may be required to generate the minimum force necessary to control (and levitate) the moving body 100 and its payload.

[0106] 26 and 27 show a moving body 100 with an inclined magnet, similar to the moving body 100 in the embodiment of FIGS. 19 and 20. In such a moving body 100, R Z 5 shows that regardless of the rotation direction, the moving body 100 generates waveforms with the shapes of plots 503C and 503D, both of which have high amplitudes 505 and match the period 504 of the electrical conductor. Therefore, in this example moving body 100, R Z Regardless of the direction of rotation, it is possible to generate a force on the moving body 100.

[0107] 26 and 27 show a vehicle 100 similar to the vehicle 100 shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, it will be understood that similar conclusions can be drawn for other embodiments such as those described above.

[0108] 28 shows a variation of the moving body 100 shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, in which the moving body 100 includes a drive magnet assembly 110 having magnetic fingers 114 each including only a single drive magnet 111. The moving body 100 shown in FIG. 28 may be more limited in the possible magnetic field patterns of the drive magnet assembly 110 compared to other embodiments in which multiple drive magnets 111 are arranged along the magnetic fingers 114.

[0109] Figure 29 shows another variation of the moving body 100 shown in Figures 19 and 20, in which the moving body 100 includes a drive magnet assembly 110 in which each magnetic finger 114 includes a plurality of drive magnets 111, and the inter-magnet boundaries 118 between adjacent drive magnets 111 within the magnetic finger 114 are not straight.

[0110] FIG. 30 illustrates another non-limiting example of a drive magnet with a repeating pattern (i.e., rotationally symmetric) feature for determining the orientation of the mobile unit 100. In this example, the mobile unit 100 includes one or more direction-identifying magnets 171 located in a central region of the mobile unit 170-1, an outer peripheral region of the mobile unit 170-2, or both regions 170-1 and 170-2. In some examples, the drive magnet assembly 110 may include a pattern of magnetized regions 112 that generate a magnetic field for the mobile unit 100 that is similar across multiple rotational positions of the mobile unit 100 relative to the vertical axis of the stator. Using one or more direction-identifying magnets 171, the stator sensor can distinguish between two or more similar potential positions of the mobile unit 100.

[0111] In some embodiments, a mobile object, such as the mobile object 100 shown in FIG. 30, may utilize an eccentric position or shape of the magnetized region 112 so that certain directions appear different from other directions when measured by the sensor 202.

[0112] In some embodiments, the pattern of magnetized regions 112 in the drive magnet assembly 110 may be repeated according to a particular pattern. For example, the magnetized regions 112 may be repeated four times, and the drive magnet 111 corresponding to a particular orientation may have four different rotational positions that are indistinguishable from one another by the sensor.

[0113] 31, a schematic block diagram of a control system according to one embodiment is shown generally at 302. The control system 302 is implemented to control the stator 200 via the controller 300, thereby controlling the operation of the mobile object 100, as described above.

[0114] To control the movement of the moving body 100, the controller 300 may be programmed to compare a reference position of the moving body 100 (represented by a reference position coordinate system block 304) with a feedback position of the moving body obtained from sensor data obtained from the sensors 202 of the stator 200, thereby determining a desired resulting motion vector that can be achieved using a combination of a feedforward controller 306 and a feedback controller 308, and modal domain force / torque vectors F φ More specifically, the feedforward controller 306 calculates the feedforward force F f and the feedback controller 308 determines the feedback force F b and the modal domain force / torque vectors are calculated as follows: F φ =F f +F b

[0115] In some embodiments (e.g., those shown in FIGS. 7, 9, 18, 19, 28, and 29), it may be desirable for the controller 300 to quickly determine the current commutation for a particular position and orientation of the vehicle 100. In some embodiments, these values ​​may be looked up from a database for a particular combination of vehicle position and vehicle orientation values. By pre-setting the range of values, the necessary calculations can be performed very quickly, allowing for a high control frequency of the control system 302.

[0116] In some embodiments, the drive magnet assembly 110 of the vehicle 100 may be divided into zones for control purposes. These zones are useful for generating forces in one or more specific directions. The force / torque vector F in the desired mode region for the control system 302 to control the vehicle 100 may be φ In calculating the modal domain force / torque vector Fφ may be converted into a force command for each particular zone of the drive magnet assembly. In some embodiments, the zones used to generate the forces may be generally fixed relative to the vehicle 100, e.g., depending on the particular repeating magnetic field pattern of the drive magnet assembly 110 and the various R Z In other embodiments, a particular magnetic zone is generally fixed to a particular section of the mobile unit 100 as viewed from the stator 200, for example, as shown in Figure 23 (see bottom left region 160D).

[0117] A model of the force-current relationship in a desired magnet zone at its current position and orientation relative to the stator conductors, resulting in a force at each specific force generation. In some embodiments, such as the embodiment of FIG. 19, the rotational symmetry of the drive magnet assembly 110 allows each repeating segment of the drive magnet assembly 110 to be treated identically, and applying current to the conductors of the stator 200 will result in a specific force at a specific relative position and orientation to the segment. The individual currents calculated to generate the desired force in each region of the magnet may be combined (e.g., summed) to determine the total required current per conductor.

[0118] Current I for controlling the moving object 100 a is the control current I assigned to each conductor a and summing all relevant currents for each conductor to obtain the stator conductor reference command I sr If there is no command current assigned to a conductor, it is desirable to set it to 0 to avoid unnecessary power consumption. The stator composite reference command for the mover 100 on the stator 200 controlled by the controller 300 can be used by one or more power amplifiers of the stator 200 to control the operation of the mover 100. The actual current generated by the power amplifiers is calculated based on the desired stator coil reference command I sr may be different from.

[0119] All six degrees of freedom (or more, or less) of the drive magnet assembly 110 of the moving body 100 may be measured for optimal motion control of the moving body 100. In some embodiments, the drive magnet assembly 110 may be treated as a whole for purposes of determining its position and orientation. In other embodiments, the positions and orientations of each of the multiple magnetic regions may be used to identify various spatial information about the moving body, which may then be combined to determine the position and orientation of the entire moving body 100.

[0120] For control purposes, the output position feedback V f are the feedback position values ​​Φ corresponding to the six states (three translational and three rotational) that define the rigid body motion. f Additionally, the state of the soft vibration mode may also be used as a feedback value.

[0121] This disclosure includes, but is not limited to, the following provisions, which may be combined with other provisions herein.

[0122] (Article 1) A mobile body operable in response to at least one external magnetic field, said mobile body comprising: at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force to move the moving body in response to the at least one external magnetic field; the at least one drive magnet has a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body; each of the plurality of magnetized regions has a respective magnetization direction; where: at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions; the magnetization regions of each of the pairs of adjacent magnetization regions have respective magnetization directions that are different from one another; each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extends from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions; A moving body, wherein at least a portion of at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects the reference point and at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by the at least one boundary region.

[0123] (Article 2) 2. The mobile body of claim 1, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths are in a common plane.

[0124] (Article 3) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least six non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0125] (Article 4) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least seven non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0126] (Article 5) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least eight non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0127] (Article 6) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least nine non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0128] (Article 7) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least ten non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0129] (Article 8) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least 12 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0130] (Article 9) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least 16 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0131] (Article 10) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least 20 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0132] (Article 11) 3. The mobile body of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least 24 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions, each of which is different from the other.

[0133] (Article 12) 12. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 11, wherein at least one of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

[0134] (Article 13) 13. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 12, wherein each of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

[0135] (Article 14) A mobile body described in any of clauses 1 to 13, wherein substantially all or all of the at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a straight line that passes through the reference point and passes through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by the at least one boundary region.

[0136] (Article 15) A mobile body described in any of clauses 1 to 14, wherein at least a portion of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects with a respective straight line that passes through the reference point and passes through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by each of the boundary regions.

[0137] (Article 16) A mobile body described in any of clauses 1 to 15, wherein substantially all or all of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a straight line that passes through the reference point and passes through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by each of the boundary regions.

[0138] (Article 17) 17. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 16, wherein adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions have different magnetization directions.

[0139] (Article 18) 18. A moving body as described in any one of clauses 1 to 17, wherein along at least one repeating path passing through at least a portion of the plurality of magnetized regions, adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions sequentially have different magnetization directions in a repeating pattern.

[0140] (Article 19) 19. The mobile body of any of clauses 1 to 18, wherein the at least one repeated path is a fixed distance from the reference point.

[0141] (Article 20) 20. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 19, wherein the at least one repeating path is circular.

[0142] (Article 21) 21. The moving body of any one of clauses 1 to 20, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions have a Halbach array.

[0143] (Article 22) at least a portion of a center line of at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects with a line passing through the reference point at a non-zero inclination angle; 22. A mobile body as described in any one of clauses 1 to 21, wherein the center lines extend along at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions and at equal intervals between adjacent pairs of the at least five non-overlapping paths that surround the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0144] (Article 23) 23. The vehicle of claim 22, wherein at least a portion of the center line is a straight line.

[0145] (Article 24) 24. The vehicle of claim 23, wherein all of the centerlines are straight lines.

[0146] (Article 25) 24. The vehicle of claim 22 or 23, wherein at least a portion of the center line is a curve.

[0147] (Article 26) 23. The vehicle of claim 22, wherein all of the centerlines are curved.

[0148] (Article 27) 23. The moving body of claim 22, wherein the center line is arcuate.

[0149] (Article 28) 28. A moving body according to any one of clauses 1 to 27, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions does not have rotational symmetry.

[0150] (Article 29) A mobile body described in any of clauses 1 to 28, wherein at least a portion of a surface of one of the plurality of magnetized regions is neither parallel nor perpendicular to the surface of another portion of the magnetized region or to at least a portion of the surface of another magnetized region.

[0151] (Article 30) 30. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 29, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions is not rectangular.

[0152] (Article 31) 31. A moving body according to any one of clauses 1 to 30, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions is not parallelepiped-shaped.

[0153] (Article 32) 32. The mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 31, wherein the outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions has a convex hull of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0154] (Article 33) 33. A moving body according to any of clauses 1 to 32, wherein at least a portion of the outer surface is curved.

[0155] (Article 34) 34. A moving body according to any of clauses 1 to 33, wherein the outer surface is substantially elliptical or elliptical in at least one plane.

[0156] (Article 35) 35. A moving body according to any of clauses 1 to 34, wherein the outer surface is substantially circular or circular in at least one plane.

[0157] (Article 36) the plurality of magnetized regions are between a first cylindrical surface and a second cylindrical surface concentric therewith; an axis of the first cylindrical surface and an axis of the second cylindrical surface pass through the reference point; the first cylindrical surface has a first diameter; 36. The movable body of any of clauses 1 to 35, wherein the second cylindrical surface has a second diameter greater than the first diameter.

[0158] (Article 37) 37. The moving body of any one of clauses 1 to 36, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions form a toroid radially bounded by the first cylindrical surface and the second cylindrical surface.

[0159] (Article 38) 38. A moving body according to any one of clauses 1 to 37, wherein the at least one drive magnet comprises a plurality of drive magnets.

[0160] (Article 39) 39. The moving body of claim 38, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0161] (Article 40) 40. The moving body according to claim 38 or 39, wherein each of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0162] (Article 41) 41. The moving body of any one of clauses 38, 39, or 40, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions contains a plurality of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0163] (Article 42) the plurality of magnetized regions are a plurality of primary magnetized regions; 42. A mobile body according to any one of clauses 1 to 41, wherein the at least one drive magnet further has at least one secondary magnetized region different from the primary magnetized regions.

[0164] (Article 43) 43. The mobile body of claim 42, wherein the at least one secondary plurality of magnetized regions comprises a plurality of secondary rotationally arranged magnetized regions rotationally distributed around the reference point.

[0165] (Article 44) 44. The moving body of claim 43, wherein the secondary rotationally arranged magnetized regions are coaxial with the primary magnetized regions.

[0166] (Article 45) 45. The mover of claim 44, wherein the secondary rotationally arranged magnetized regions are radially spaced apart from the primary magnetized regions.

[0167] (Article 46) 46. ​​A mobile body according to any one of clauses 42 to 45, wherein the at least one secondary plurality of magnetized regions comprises a secondary linear array of a plurality of magnetized regions arranged in a linear grid.

[0168] (Article 47) 47. The moving body of claim 46, wherein the grid is one-dimensional.

[0169] (Article 48) 48. A moving body according to clause 46 or 47, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions of the secondary linear array is linear in shape.

[0170] (Article 49) 49. The moving body of claim 46, 47, or 48, wherein each of the plurality of magnetized regions in the secondary linear array is linear in shape.

[0171] (Article 50) 49. A moving body as described in any one of clauses 42 to 49, depending directly or indirectly from clause 38, wherein the primary magnetized regions contain at least one of the drive magnets and the at least one secondary magnetized region contains at least another of the drive magnets.

[0172] (Article 51) Further comprising a frame, A moving body according to any one of clauses 1 to 50, wherein at least one of the at least one drive magnet is fixed to the frame.

[0173] (Article 52) 52. The moving body of claim 51, wherein each of the at least one drive magnet is fixed to the frame.

[0174] (Article 53) a mobile object according to any one of clauses 1 to 52; a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in a non-circular manner and generating at least one external magnetic field;

[0175] (Article 54) a mobile body movable in response to at least one external magnetic field; a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in a non-circular pattern to generate the at least one external magnetic field; the moving body has at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force that moves the moving body in response to the external magnetic field; the at least one drive magnet has a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body; each of the plurality of magnetized regions has a respective magnetization direction; where: at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions; the magnetization regions of each of the pairs of adjacent magnetization regions have respective magnetization directions that are different from one another; a motion system, wherein each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extends from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0176] (Article 55) 55. The mobility system of clause 54, wherein said at least five non-overlapping paths are in a common plane.

[0177] (Article 56) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least six non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0178] (Article 57) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least seven non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0179] (Article 58) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least eight non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0180] (Article 59) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least nine non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0181] (Article 60) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least ten non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0182] (Article 61) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths include at least 12 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0183] (Article 62) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths comprise at least 16 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0184] (Article 63) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths comprise at least 20 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0185] (Article 64) 56. A movement system as described in clause 54 or 55, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths comprise at least 24 non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0186] (Article 65) 65. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 64, wherein at least one of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

[0187] (Article 66) 66. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 65, wherein each of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

[0188] (Article 67) A movement system described in any of clauses 54 to 66, wherein at least a portion of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a respective straight line passing through the reference point and passing through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by each of the boundary regions.

[0189] (Article 68) 68. The movement system of clause 67, wherein substantially all or all of said at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a straight line passing through said reference point and passing through at least one of said adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by said at least one boundary region.

[0190] (Article 69) A movement system as described in clause 67 or 68, wherein at least a portion of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a respective straight line passing through the reference point and passing through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by each of the boundary regions.

[0191] (Article 70) 70. The movement system of clause 67, 68 or 69, wherein substantially all or all of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects a straight line passing through the reference point and through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions enclosed by each of the boundary regions.

[0192] (Article 71) 72. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 71, wherein adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions have different magnetization directions.

[0193] (Article 72) 72. A movement system as described in any of clauses 54 to 71, wherein along at least one repeating path passing through at least a portion of the plurality of magnetized regions, adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions sequentially have different magnetization directions in a repeating pattern.

[0194] (Article 73) 73. The mobility system of claim 72, wherein the at least one repeated path is a fixed distance from the reference point.

[0195] (Article 74) 74. A movement system according to any of clauses 73, wherein the at least one repeating path is circular.

[0196] (Article 75) 75. The translation system of any of clauses 54 to 74, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions comprises a Halbach array.

[0197] (Article 76) at least a portion of a center line of at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects with a line passing through the reference point at a non-zero inclination angle; 76. A movement system as described in any of clauses 54 to 75, wherein the center lines extend along at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions and at equal intervals between adjacent pairs of the at least five non-overlapping paths that surround the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0198] (Article 77) 77. The movement system of claim 76, wherein at least a portion of the centerline is a straight line.

[0199] (Article 78) 78. The movement system of any of clauses 77, wherein all of the centerlines are straight lines.

[0200] (Article 79) 78. A movement system according to either clause 76 or 77, wherein at least a portion of the centre line is curved.

[0201] (Article 80) 77. The movement system of claim 76, wherein all of said centerlines are curved.

[0202] (Article 81) 81. The movement system of clause 80, wherein the centerline is arcuate.

[0203] (Article 82) 82. A translation system according to any of clauses 54 to 81, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetised regions does not have rotational symmetry.

[0204] (Article 83) A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 82, wherein at least a portion of a surface of one of the plurality of magnetized regions is neither parallel nor perpendicular to the surface of another portion of the magnetized region or to at least a portion of the surface of another magnetized region.

[0205] (Article 84) 84. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 83, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions is not rectangular.

[0206] (Article 85) 85. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 84, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions is not parallelepiped shaped.

[0207] (Article 86) 86. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 85, wherein the outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions comprises a convex hull of the plurality of magnetized regions.

[0208] (Article 87) 87. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 86, wherein at least a portion of the outer surface is curved.

[0209] (Article 88) 88. The movement system of clause 87, wherein the outer surface is substantially elliptical or elliptical in at least one plane.

[0210] (Article 89) 89. The movement system of clause 88, wherein the outer surface is substantially circular or circular in at least one plane.

[0211] (Article 90) the plurality of magnetized regions are between a first cylindrical surface and a second cylindrical surface concentric therewith; an axis of the first cylindrical surface and an axis of the second cylindrical surface pass through the reference point; the first cylindrical surface has a first diameter; 89. A transfer system as described in any of clauses 54 to 89, wherein the second cylindrical surface has a second diameter greater than the first diameter.

[0212] (Article 91) 91. The translation system of claim 90, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions form a toroid radially bounded by the first cylindrical surface and the second cylindrical surface.

[0213] (Article 92) 92. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 91, wherein the at least one drive magnet comprises a plurality of drive magnets.

[0214] (Article 93) 93. The movement system of claim 92, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0215] (Article 94) 94. The movement system of claim 92 or 93, wherein each of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0216] (Article 95) 95. The movement system of any of clauses 92, 93, or 94, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions contains a plurality of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0217] (Article 96) the plurality of magnetized regions are a plurality of primary magnetized regions; 96. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 95, wherein the at least one drive magnet further has at least one secondary plurality of magnetized regions different from the primary plurality of magnetized regions.

[0218] (Article 97) 97. The movement system of claim 96, wherein the at least one secondary plurality of magnetized regions comprises a secondary rotationally arranged plurality of magnetized regions rotationally distributed around the reference point.

[0219] (Article 98) 98. The translation system of clause 97, wherein the secondary rotationally arranged magnetized regions are coaxial with the primary magnetized regions.

[0220] (Article 99) 99. The translation system of claim 98, wherein the secondary rotationally disposed magnetized regions are radially spaced apart from the primary magnetized regions.

[0221] (Article 100) 99. A movement system according to any of clauses 96 to 99, wherein the at least one secondary plurality of magnetized regions comprises a secondary linear array of a plurality of magnetized regions arranged in a linear grid.

[0222] (Article 101) 101. The movement system of claim 100, wherein the grid is one-dimensional.

[0223] (Article 102) 102. The movement system of claim 100 or 101, wherein at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions of the secondary linear array is linear in shape.

[0224] (Article 103) 103. The movement system of claim 100, 101, or 102, wherein each magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions of the secondary linear array is linear in shape.

[0225] (Article 104) A movement system as described in any of clauses 96 to 103, depending directly or indirectly from clause 92, wherein the primary magnetized regions contain at least one of the plurality of drive magnets and the at least one secondary magnetized region contains at least another of the plurality of drive magnets.

[0226] (Article 105) Further comprising a frame, 105. A movement system according to any of clauses 54 to 104, wherein at least one of the at least one drive magnet is fixed to the frame.

[0227] (Article 106) Clause 106. The movement system of clause 105, wherein each of the at least one drive magnet is fixed to the frame.

[0228] (Article 107) 107. A movement system according to any of clauses 53 to 106, wherein the plurality of electrical conductors are arranged along a grid of linear spacing.

[0229] (Article 108) 108. The movement system of claim 107, wherein the linearly spaced grid is an orthogonal grid.

[0230] (Article 109) 109. A movement system according to clause 107 or 108, wherein the grid of linear intervals is two-dimensional.

[0231] (Article 110) the plurality of electrical conductors includes a first plurality of electrical conductors extending in a first direction and a second plurality of electrical conductors extending in a third direction that is not parallel to the first direction; At least some of the first plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in a second direction that is not parallel to the first direction. 109. A movement system as described in any of clauses 53 to 109, wherein at least some of the second plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in a fourth direction that is not parallel to the third direction.

[0232] (Article 111) Clause 111. The movement system of clause 110, wherein the first direction is generally perpendicular to the second direction.

[0233] (Article 112) 112. The movement system of claim 110 or 111, wherein the third direction is generally perpendicular to the fourth direction.

[0234] (Article 113) 13. The movement system of claim 110, 111, or 112, wherein the second direction is generally parallel to the third direction.

[0235] (Article 114) 114. The movement system of any of clauses 110 to 113, wherein the first direction is generally parallel to the fourth direction.

[0236] (Article 115) 115. A movement system according to any of clauses 110 to 114, wherein the first direction, the second direction, the third direction and the fourth direction are generally in a common plane.

[0237] (Article 116) 116. A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 115, wherein at least three of the first plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in the second direction.

[0238] (Article 117) 117. A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 116, wherein at least three of the second plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in the fourth direction.

[0239] (Article 118) A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 117, wherein the first conductor-second direction spacing in the second direction between adjacent ones of the first plurality of electrical conductors spaced apart in the second direction is substantially constant or is constant.

[0240] (Article 119) A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 118, wherein the second conductor-fourth direction spacing in the fourth direction between adjacent ones of the second plurality of electrical conductors spaced apart in the fourth direction is substantially constant or is constant.

[0241] (Article 120) A movement system as described in clause 119 when dependent on clause 118, wherein the second conductor-fourth direction spacing is substantially equal to or equal to the first conductor-second direction spacing.

[0242] (Article 121) 121. A movement system according to any of clauses 110 to 120, wherein at least some of the first plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in the first direction.

[0243] (Article 122) A movement system as described in clause 121, wherein the first conductor-first direction spacing in the first direction between adjacent ones of the first plurality of conductors spaced apart in the first direction is substantially constant or is constant.

[0244] (Article 123) 123. A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 122, wherein at least some of the second plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in the third direction.

[0245] (Article 124) A movement system as described in clause 123, wherein the second conductor-third direction spacing in the third direction between adjacent ones of the second plurality of conductors spaced apart in the third direction is substantially constant or is constant.

[0246] (Article 125) A movement system as described in clause 124 when dependent on clause 122, wherein the first conductor-first direction spacing is substantially equal to or equal to the second conductor-third direction spacing.

[0247] (Article 126) 126. A movement system as described in any of clauses 110 to 125, wherein each of the first plurality of electrical conductors has a constant first conductor length in the first direction.

[0248] (Article 127) The movement system of clause 126 when depending directly or indirectly from clause 36 or 90, wherein the first diameter is greater than 80% of the first conductor length.

[0249] (Article 128) Clause 128. The transfer system of clause 127, wherein the first diameter is greater than 90% of the first conductor length.

[0250] (Article 129) 129. The transfer system of claim 127 or 128, wherein the first diameter is greater than the first conductor length.

[0251] (Article 130) 130. The transfer system of any of clauses 126 to 129 when depending directly or indirectly from clause 36 or 90, wherein the second diameter is greater than the first conductor length.

[0252] (Article 131) 131. The movement system of any of clauses 110 to 130, wherein each of the second plurality of electrical conductors has a constant second conductor length in the third direction.

[0253] (Article 132) The transfer system of clause 131 when depending directly or indirectly from clause 36 or 90, wherein the first diameter is greater than 80% of the second conductor length.

[0254] (Article 133) Clause 133. The transfer system of clause 132, wherein the first diameter is greater than 90% of the second conductor length.

[0255] (Article 134) 134. The transfer system of any of clauses 132 or 133, wherein the first diameter is greater than the second conductor length.

[0256] (Article 135) A transfer system according to any of clauses 131 to 134 when depending directly or indirectly from clause 36 or 90, wherein the second diameter is greater than the second conductor length.

[0257] (Article 136) A movement system according to any of clauses 131 to 135 when depending directly or indirectly from clause 126, wherein the first conductor length is substantially equal to or equal to the second conductor length.

[0258] (Article 137) 137. A movement system according to any of clauses 56 to 136, wherein the plurality of electrical conductors comprises a plurality of coils.

[0259] (Article 138) 138. A movement system according to any of clauses 53 to 137, further comprising a stator having the plurality of electrical conductors.

[0260] (Article 139) Clause 139. The movement system of clause 138, further comprising a controller for controlling the stator to generate the at least one external magnetic field.

[0261] (Article 140) at least a portion of a first magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions is configured to align with a first electrical conductor of the plurality of electrical conductors; 139. A movement system according to any of clauses 53 to 139, wherein at least a portion of a second magnetized region of the plurality of magnetized regions is configured to align with a second electrical conductor of the plurality of electrical conductors when at least a portion of the first magnetized region is aligned with the first electrical conductor.

[0262] (Article 141) 141. A movement system as described in clause 140, wherein the first magnetized region and the second magnetized region are diametrically opposed about the reference point.

[0263] (Article 142) 141. The movement system of claim 140, wherein the first magnetized region is adjacent to the second magnetized region.

[0264] (Article 143) At least a part of the third magnetization region of the plurality of magnetization regions is At least a portion of the first magnetized region is aligned with the first electrical conductor; When at least a portion of the second magnetized region is aligned with the second electrical conductor, 143. The movement system of any of clauses 140, 141, or 142, configured to align with a third electrical conductor of the plurality of electrical conductors.

[0265] (Article 144) Clause 144. The movement system of clause 143, wherein the second magnetized region is adjacent to the third magnetized region.

[0266] (Article 145) 145. A movement system according to clause 143 or 144, wherein the third magnetized region is diametrically opposite to the first magnetized region.

[0267] (Article 146) At least a part of a fourth magnetization region of the plurality of magnetization regions is At least a portion of the first magnetized region is aligned with the first electrical conductor; At least a portion of the second magnetized region is aligned with the second electrical conductor; When at least a portion of the third magnetized region is aligned with the third electrical conductor, configured to align with a fourth electrical conductor of the plurality of electrical conductors. 146. A mobile system according to clause 143, 144 or 145.

[0268] (Article 147) Clause 147. The movement system of clause 146, wherein the third magnetization region is adjacent to the fourth magnetization region.

[0269] (Article 148) 148. A movement system according to clause 146 or 147, wherein the fourth magnetised region is diametrically opposite the second magnetised region.

[0270] (Article 149) A mobile body described in any one of clauses 1 to 52 or a mobile system described in any one of clauses 53 to 148, wherein the magnetization regions of the plurality of magnetization regions are rotationally distributed with a first angular period around the reference point.

[0271] (Article 150) A moving body or moving system as described in clause 149, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions are substantially rotationally symmetric with respect to the period of the first angular period.

[0272] (Article 151) A moving body or moving system as described in clause 150, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions are rotationally symmetric with respect to the first angular period.

[0273] (Article 152) 152. A mobile body or mobile system according to claim 149, 150 or 151, wherein the plurality of magnetised regions are substantially rotationally antisymmetric.

[0274] (Article 153) A mobile body or mobile system as described in clause 152, wherein the plurality of magnetized regions are rotationally antisymmetric.

[0275] (Article 154) the plurality of magnetized regions are substantially rotationally antisymmetric with a period that is half the first angular period; A mobile object or mobile system as defined in clause 152.

[0276] (Article 155) the plurality of magnetized regions are rotationally antisymmetric with a period that is half the first angular period; 15. A mobile object or mobile system according to clause 152, 153 or 154.

[0277] While specific embodiments have been described and illustrated, these embodiments should be considered as illustrative only and not limiting of the invention as construed according to the appended claims.

Claims

1. 1. A mobile body operable in response to at least one external magnetic field, said mobile body comprising: at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force to move the moving body in response to the at least one external magnetic field; the at least one drive magnet has a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body; each of the plurality of magnetized regions has a respective magnetization direction; where: at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions; the magnetization regions of each of the pairs of adjacent magnetization regions have respective magnetization directions that are different from one another; each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extends from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions; A moving body, wherein at least a portion of at least one boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects the reference point and at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by the at least one boundary region.

2. a mobile body movable in response to at least one external magnetic field; a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in a non-circular pattern to generate the at least one external magnetic field; the moving body has at least one drive magnet configured to generate a force that moves the moving body in response to the external magnetic field; the at least one drive magnet has a plurality of magnetized regions distributed in a rotational direction around a reference point of the moving body; each of the plurality of magnetized regions has a respective magnetization direction; where: at least five non-overlapping paths are interposed between pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions; the magnetization regions of each of the pairs of adjacent magnetization regions have respective magnetization directions that are different from one another; a motion system, wherein each non-overlapping path of the at least five non-overlapping paths extends from the reference point to an outer surface of the plurality of magnetized regions.

3. 3. The movement system of claim 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths comprise at least twelve non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

4. 3. The movement system of claim 2, wherein the at least five non-overlapping paths comprise at least sixteen non-overlapping paths interposed between the pairs of different adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions.

5. 5. The movement system of claim 2, 3, or 4, wherein at least one of the at least five non-overlapping paths is radially monotonic between the reference point and the outer surface.

6. 6. The movement system according to claim 2, wherein at least a portion of each boundary region between adjacent magnetized regions intersects with a respective straight line that passes through the reference point and passes through at least one of the adjacent magnetized regions surrounded by each of the boundary regions.

7. The translation system according to claim 2 , wherein adjacent magnetized regions of the plurality of magnetized regions have different magnetization directions.

8. at least a portion of a center line of at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions intersects with a line passing through the reference point at a non-zero inclination angle; 8. The movement system of claim 2, wherein the centerlines extend along at least one of the plurality of magnetized regions and at equal intervals between adjacent pairs of the at least five non-overlapping paths that surround the plurality of magnetized regions.

9. the plurality of magnetized regions are between a first cylindrical surface and a second cylindrical surface concentric therewith; an axis of the first cylindrical surface and an axis of the second cylindrical surface pass through the reference point; the first cylindrical surface has a first diameter; The transfer system of claim 2 , wherein the second cylindrical surface has a second diameter greater than the first diameter.

10. The movement system of claim 2 , wherein the at least one drive magnet comprises a plurality of drive magnets.

11. The movement system of claim 10 , wherein each of the plurality of magnetized regions contains at least one of the plurality of drive magnets.

12. 12. A movement system according to any one of claims 2 to 11, wherein the plurality of electrical conductors are arranged along a grid of linear spacing.

13. the plurality of electrical conductors includes a first plurality of electrical conductors extending in a first direction and a second plurality of electrical conductors extending in a third direction that is not parallel to the first direction; At least some of the first plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in a second direction that is not parallel to the first direction.

13. The movement system of claim 2, wherein at least some of the second plurality of electrical conductors are spaced apart from one another in a fourth direction that is not parallel to the third direction.

14. The movement system of claim 13 , wherein the first direction, the second direction, the third direction, and the fourth direction are generally in a common plane.

15. 15. The movement system of claim 13 or 14, wherein at least some of the first plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in the first direction.

16. 16. The movement system of claim 13, 14, or 15, wherein at least some of the second plurality of conductors are spaced apart from one another in the third direction.

17. 17. A movement system according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein each of the first plurality of electrical conductors has a constant first conductor length in the first direction.

18. 18. The movement system of claim 17 when depending directly or indirectly from claim 9, wherein the first diameter is greater than 80% of the first conductor length.

19. 19. The movement system of claim 13, wherein each of the second plurality of electrical conductors has a constant second conductor length in the third direction.

20. 20. The movement system of claim 19 when depending directly or indirectly from claim 9, wherein the first diameter is greater than 80% of the second conductor length.

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