Direct Kinetostatic Analysis of a Gripper with Curved Flexures

Abstract

Micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS) extensively employed planar mechanisms with elastic curved beams. However, using a curved circular beam as a flexure hinge, in most cases, needs a more sophisticated kinetostatic model than the conventional planar flexures. An elastic curved beam generally allows its outer sections to experience full plane mobility with three degrees of freedom, making complex non-linear models necessary to predict their behavior. This paper describes the direct kinetostatic analysis of a planar gripper with an elastic curved beam is described and then solved by calculating the tangent stiffness matrix in closed form. Two simplified models and different contributions to derive their tangent stiffness matrices are considered. Then, the Newton–Raphson iterative method solves the non-linear direct kinetostatic problem. The technique, which appears particularly useful for real-time applications, is finally applied to a case study consisting of a four-bar linkage gripper with elastic curved beam joints that can be used in real-time grasping operations at the microscale.

Elastodynamic modeling and structural error compensation for a 5-DOF parallel mechanism with subclosed loops

“…According to equation (18) and Figure 9, relative position error along x direction is 8.223%, relative position error along y direction is 8.182%, and relative position error along z direction is 9.461%. The relative angle error around x, y and z directions are 8.521%, 8.764%, and 8.685%, respectively.…”

“…Based on VJM, Wu et al 13 proposed a comprehensive and effective elastodynamic modeling method for the Trimule PKM, which considering the elastic deformation of ball joints, revolute joints, universal joints, and complex structures simultaneously. Cammarata et al [14][15][16][17][18] conducted a series of studies on the applications of MSA-based methods for elastodynamic modeling, which proved MSA-based methods have good applicability in different situations such as considering the influence of gaps, with subclosed-loop structure, different types of contacts, and curved beam types. Additionally, Cammarata et al 19 first proposed the condensed stiffness matrix, which is greatly helpful for MSA-based methods used in various PKMs.…”

On the Dependency of the Electromechanical Response of Rotary MEMS/NEMS on Their Embedded Flexure Hinges’ Geometry

“…The SOI wafer provides a high-quality single-crystal silicon layer on a thin insulating layer, which minimizes stress and improves device performances [56]. Moreover, the stiffness of flexure hinges can be theoretically estimated using the compliance matrix approach, as described in [57]. This method allows for the calculation of hinge stiffness based on its geometric parameters and material properties, providing valuable insights into hinge design and optimization.…”

Editorial for the Special Issue on Flexible Micromanipulators and Micromanipulation

“…This work provides an efficient and accurate method for modeling the behavior of compliant mechanisms, which is important for the design and control of micromanipulators. Cammarata et al [ 10 ] present a direct kinetostatic analysis of a gripper with curved flexures. This work provides a detailed understanding of the behavior of curved flexures, which is important for the design and control of micromanipulators.…”