A decoupled flexure-based alignment mechanism for micromanipulation

In this paper, a novel decoupled 5-DOF flexure-based register system is proposed to achieve the improvement of registration accuracy, which is a key indicator to measure the performance for Multilayer Roll-to-roll Printed Electronics (MR2RPE) equipment. The register system consists of 4-DOF compliant Support Mechanism and 1-DOF compliant Platform, each comprising some flexure-beam prismatic joints and parallelogram hybrid flexure with compliant beams. The mechanism with such a topological structure enables the motions of the printer head strictly along the X, Y, Z axes and around the X, Y axes. In addition, the printer head has decoupled motion to ensure the high precision of registering. The kinematics, statics and dynamics analysis of the mechanism are conducted to evaluate the performance of the mechanism in terms of travel range and natural frequency. The finite element simulation is carried out to examine and verify the mechanical performance and the theoretical models, which shows that the design of register system has a significant effect on improving the registration accuracy and efficiency for MR2RPE.