Abstract
In order to permit a large deflection, three lamina emergent torsional flexure hinges are reconfigured to create a new triple LET-type flexure hinge (TLET) in this paper. The TLET consists of flexure hinges in a series coupled with others in parallel configuration. This arrangement is aimed to enhance the displacement of the joint. The proposed joint is capable of generating a large displacement and a large capacity of load within safety working conditions. The closed-form models are derived to calculate the equivalent spring constant, rotation angle, and displacement of the proposed joint. Failure analysis of the TLET joint with different materials is conducted by finite element analysis. The closed-form models are validated by simulations and experimentations. The validated results are well coincided each other. The result found that the joint achieves a maximum large displacement of 16.97 mm in the x-axis with respect to a maximum load of 20 N. When the joint slides a maximum displacement of 16.97 mm along the x-axis, the output displacement emerges out the z-axis up to 23.12 mm, respectively. The joint can achieve an angle displacement of 38.92°. The displacement of the TLET joint is 2.4 times greater than that of the traditional LET joint. The proposed joint is considered for engineering applications where a large working stroke and a large capacity of load are expected.
Highlights
Laminar emergent mechanism (LEM) is a subbranch of compliant mechanisms (CMs)
LEM is considered as a mechanism where its functions are similar to a transmission mechanism, e.g., four bar mechanism, spherical LEMs [15, 16], slider crank mechanism [17, 18], and bistable collapsible compliant mechanism [19]
Due to the aforementioned advantages, the LEMs have been widely utilized for a variety of engineering applications, e.g., automobile industry, electronic industry, biomedical engineering, rescue equipment, micro-electromechanical system, cellphone and tablet holder, card syringe, lift table, multilayer shoes, solar panel, and membrane switch [18]
Summary
Laminar emergent mechanism (LEM) is a subbranch of compliant mechanisms (CMs). LEM’s functions are similar those of CMs which transfer force, motion, and energy [1,2,3,4,5,6]. For engineering applications in plane and space, a welldesigned flexure hinge should not provide a large deflection or a large rotating angle but it should ensure without plastic failures. In order to solve this situation, several researches focused on developing new shapes of flexure hinges. In order to analyze behaviors of a LEM’s flexure hinges, several methods have been developed, including the closed-form model [24], compliance matrix method [25, 27, 28], semianalytic model [29], finite element method [30], and pseudorigid-body model [31]. E new contributions of this paper are to design and analyze a new triple LET joint (TLET) that is capable of allowing a large range of stroke and wide range of loads with no failures. Behaviors and performances of the TLET joint are compared with those of a conventional LET joint
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
