Compliant bistable mechanisms are mechanisms that have two stable equilibrium positions within their range of motion. Their bistability is mainly due to the elasticity of their members. This thesis introduces a new type of bistable micromechanisms, the Bistable, Spherical, Compliant, four-bar Micromechanism (BSCM). Theory to predict bistable positions and configurations is also developed. Bistabilty was demonstrated through testing done on micro-prototypes. Compared to the mathematical model of the BSCM, Finite element models of the BSCM indicated important qualitative differences in the mechanism's stability behavior and its input-angle-input torque relation. The BSCM has many valuable features, such as: Two stable positions that require power only when moving from one stable position to the other, accurate and repeatable out-of-plane motion with resistance to small perturbations. The BSCM may be useful in several applications such as active Braille systems and Digital Light Processing (DLP) chips.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:USF/oai:scholarcommons.usf.edu:etd-1667 |
| Date | 07 November 2007 |
| Creators | Choueifati, Joseph Georges |
| Publisher | Scholar Commons |
| Source Sets | University of South Flordia |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | default |
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