Improving Passive Stability of a Planar Quasi-Zero Stiffness Magnetic Levitation System via Lever Arm

Presented in this paper is a modified design of a planar quasi-zero stiffness magnetic levitation vibration isolation system. A new design parameter referred to as horizontal gap is introduced to create a lever arm in the horizontal direction, and its effects on the load bearing capacity and planar stability of the system are investigated. Static and dynamic simulations of the system have revealed that the lever arm is capable of reducing the instability in the rotational degree of freedom without affecting the translational axes, thus minimising the control effort required for a stable operation.