Linear Motion Carriage Driven and Guided by Elastically Supported and Preloaded Lead Screw Nuts

摘要

The quest for low cost precision machinery benefits developing nations and can open new markets The principles of elastic averaging can fulfill the need for low cost precision machinery while maintaining a large degree of accuracy and repeatability. In this paper, a linear carriage was constructed, built, and tested using readily available industrial construction supplies Elastic averaging was achieved by two hex nuts preloaded via flexures on a threaded rod. The prototype maintained accuracy and repeatability to better than 25 microns in the carriage's six degrees of freedom These results are consistent with the postulations of a kinematic error model performed on the carriage design and suggest a wide variety of applications for the concept.