A validation of a parametric compliance matrix for circularly curved leaf flexures and its application in parallel mechanisms

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Abstract

This paper presents a validation of a parametric compliance matrix of a circularly curved leaf flexure (CCLF), which has been obtained using the direct method. This is done for three case studies. In case study one, the compliance matrix of a single flexure is evaluated. The results are compared with the results from a finite element analysis over a range of geometrical parameters. This maps how the geometry of the flexure affects the accuracy of the compliance matrix. It is shown that an increase of both the sweep angle and the height of the flexure show a decrease in the accuracy. Additionally a test setup was built to measure the stiffness of a single flexure to validate the compliance matrix. Furthermore, in case study two and three, the compliance matrices of mechanisms containing multiple flexures in series and parallel are derived with the compliance matrix method, using adjoint transformation matrices. The results are validated by comparison with FEA and measurements from a test setup. A parallel combination of flexures show a decrease in error, when compared to a single flexure.

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