investigation into the behavior of flexure joints with respect to high-precision mechanisms

A qualitative examination into the behavior of a variety of flexure joints was performed. It was found that of the initial seven joints examined only three had the characteristics to emulate the standard rotational pin joint. A complete evaluation of the three viable joint candidates was performed with the use of finite element modelling. The evaluation first focused on the joint itself, then the investigation turned to the performance of the joint in a simple mechanism, the four-bar linkage. The results indicate a dependence on geometry and loading for all the joint models studied.