Reliability-Based Multi-Objective Optimization Design of a Compliant Feed Drive Mechanism for Micromachining

Featured Application micromachining, feed drive mechanisms. In precision engineering, the use of compliant mechanisms (CMs) in positioning devices has recently bloomed. However, during the course of their development, beginning from conceptual design through to the finished instrument based on a regular optimization process, many obstacles still need to be overcome, since the optimal solutions often lie on constrained boundaries or at the margin of safe/unsafe domains. Accordingly, if uncertainty occurs during the fabrication or operation of the mechanism, it might lose its functions, rendering the design infeasible. This paper proposes a universal design process for positioning CMs, consisting of two steps: optimal design of the pseudo-rigid-body model, and reliability-integrated multi-objective optimization design using NSGA-II algorithms. This optimization algorithm is applied in the design of a feed drive mechanism for micromachining. The optimal design is also fabricated and tested. The results calculated for the displacement amplification ratio, natural frequency, and input/output stiffness using different approaches, including analytical methods, simulations, and experiments, were compared to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed synthesis method, and show discrepancies of less than 5%. Thus, the results convincingly support the applicability of the proposed optimization algorithm for the design of other precision-positioning CMs prone to failure in vulnerable conditions.