A Compact 2-DOF Piezoelectric-Driven Platform Based on “Z-Shaped” Flexure Hinges

A compact 2-DOF (two degrees of freedom) piezoelectric-driven platform for 3D cellular bio-assembly systems has been proposed based on “Z-shaped” flexure hinges. Multiple linear motions with high resolution both in x and y directions are achieved. The “Z-shaped” flexure hinges and the parallel-six-connecting-rods structure are utilized to obtain the lowest working stress while compared with other types of flexure hinges. In order to achieve the optimized structure, matrix-based compliance modeling (MCM) method and finite element method (FEM) are used to evaluate both the static and dynamic performances of the proposed 2-DOF piezoelectric-driven platform. Experimental results indicate that the maximum motion displacements for x-stage and y-stage are l(x) = 17.65 μm and l(y) = 15.45 μm, respectively. The step response time for x-stage and y-stage are t(x) = 1.7 ms and t(y) = 1.6 ms, respectively.