Stiffness and statics analysis of a compact 3-PRC parallel micromanipulator for micro/nano scale manipulation

The stiffness and statics models of an improved 3-PRC (three-prismatic-revolute-cylindrical) compact compliant parallel micromanipulator (CPM) are established in this paper, which are quite necessary in selecting actuators according to the output forces. By investigating the elastic deformations in each flexure hinge, the statics equations relating the actuator’s forces to both the applied external forces and induced internal forces are obtained. And the stiffness model in the degree-of-freedom directions of the CPM is estimated as well. The established models have been validated via the finite element analysis performed with ANSYS software package. Furthermore, the variation tendencies of the stiffness with respect to the CPM architectural parameters have been obtained based upon the stiffness model. The presented results are valuable for both design and development of a new CPM for micro/nano scale manipulation.