16

German

Compliant Mechanisms

English


16.1

STRUCTURE (OF A BODY)
Description of a body, consisting of parts having material connection, in terms of number and kind of its parts and sequence of their connection.
16.2

BODY, COMPLIANT [COMPLIANT LINK]
Body of which the motion is dependent on its geometry, its material properties and the location and magnitude of applied forces. (Note: this is the opposite of a rigid body)
16.3

ELEMENT, COMPLIANT
Mechanism element carrying deformation in a compliant mechanism. (Note: usually the connection forces are of interest rather than the motion of the element itself)
16.4

SEGMENT (OF A COMPLIANT BODY)
Part of a compliant body, usually characterized by a discontinuity in material or geometric property.
16.5

JOINT, COMPLIANT [FLEXIBLE JOINT, FLEXURE JOINT]
Connection between two bodies or body segments with at least one relative motion due to deformation.
16.6

MOBILITY OF A COMPLIANT JOINT
Maximally possible relative motion in a compliant joint between limit positions.
16.7

ACTUATOR, COMPLIANT
Actuator in which work is connected with distinct deformation of compliant elements or segments.
16.8

MECHANISM, COMPLIANT
Mechanism which gains all or part of its mobility due to the relative flexibility of its elements rather than with rigid-body joints only.
16.9

MECHANISM, FULLY COMPLIANT
Mechanism consisting of compliant bodies only.
16.10

MECHANISM, PARTIALLY COMPLIANT [HYBRID COMPLIANT MECHANISM]
Mechanism consisting of rigid bodies and compliant bodies.
16.11

COMPLIANT MECHANISM, MONOLITHIC
Compliant mechanism manufactured as one single piece of material, e.g. by lithographical removal of material from a single block or by moulding.
16.12

COMPLIANT MECHANISM, BISTABLE
Compliant mechanism which tends towards one of its two stable equilibrium positions.
16.13

COMPLIANCE, CONCENTRATED [LUMPED]
Compliance of a segment of a body exhibiting less resistance than the surrounding areas of the body.
16.14

COMPLIANCE, DISTRIBUTED
Compliance of a body exhibiting distinct resistance in all its areas.
16.15

COMPLIANCE, VARIABLE
Compliance of a body or segment of a body changing due to variation of conditions of structure or surroundings.
16.16

COMPLIANCE, REVERSIBLE
Variable compliance that re-establish the original conditions after variation of conditions of structure and surroundings
16.17

MECHANICAL COHERENCE
Material connection of elements of a mechanical system. Note: see also term 11.1.10 Coherence.
16.18

PSEUDO-RIGID BODY MODEL [PRB]
Rigid-body model of a compliant mechanism, in which the compliant joints have been replaced by kinematic joints and springs are added to imitate the flexibility.
16.19

PSEUDO JOINT
Point on a flexible segment at which external forces are applied.
16.20

FLEXURE HINGE [FLEXURAL PIVOT]
Flexural joint with an elastic segment, approximated acting as a hinge.
16.21

FLEXURE HINGE, LEAF SPRING
Flexure hinge in which the elastic segment is a leaf spring.
16.22

FLEXURE HINGE, NOTCH
Flexure hinge created by locally reduced thickness of the compliant body.
16.23

FLEXURAL PIVOT, SMALL-LENGTH
Flexural pivot in which the length of the flexible segment, typically a bending leaf spring, is much smaller than the adjacent rigid segments.
16.24

HINGE, LIVING
Special case of a small-length flexural pivot with extremely small joint size.
16.25

COMPLIANT AXIS
Axis of rotation in a revolute compliant joint.
16.26

AXIS DRIFT
Change of the position of the compliant axis.
16.27

FLEXURE HINGE, FIXED-PINNED
Cantilever beam, being clamped on the first end and loaded at the other end.
16.28

CROSS-FLEXURE PIVOT, SINGLE AXIS [CROSS-STRIP JOINT]
Revolute compliant joint consisting of two orthogonal leaf springs.
16.29

CROSS-AXIS FLEXURAL PIVOT
Revolute compliant joint consisting of a symmetrical arrangement of orthogonal leaf springs.
16.30

CARTWHEEL HINGE
Revolute compliant joint consisting of a pair of orthogonal leaf springs that are rigidly connected along a line coinciding with the rotation axis.