ABSTRACT

The aim of this chapter is to incorporate the flexure hinges that were introduced and modeled by means of their compliances within the previous chapter into various mechanisms, either planar or spatial, in order to derive static (quasi-static) models that can naturally include, develop, and take advantage of the compliance-defined flexures. Such mechanisms that are formed by connecting rigid links and flexure hinges will be called flexurebased compliant mechanisms. Each individual component of these compliant mechanisms, either flexible or rigid, will be considered as a separate

link

, and generically it can be considered that any compliant mechanism is composed of flexure hinges solely because a rigid link is virtually a flexure hinge with zero compliance. Formally, the links will be connected at

nodes

that are only graphical representations of the junctions between adjacent links (or between links and supports).