A resonant legged stepping piezoelectric actuator based on a compliant mechanism

To meet the requirements of precision instruments for high-speed and high-resolution actuators, a resonant legged stepping piezoelectric actuator based on a new compliant mechanism is proposed in this study. The longitudinal and bending vibration mode of the actuator are excited at the same time to achieve high-speed movement in the resonant state. In addition, the high-precision positioning of the actuator is achieved by applying DC to the PZT stacks. In this paper, the finite element model is established to design and analyze the structure, and the prototype is manufactured, assembled and tested. The experimental results show that the maximum speed of the actuator is 246.7 mm/s and the maximum load is 50 g at the driving frequency of 2.71 kHz and the voltage of 120 V PP . Under static conditions, the maximum resolution of the prototype is 1.1 nm. The actuator with both high speed and high resolution can be used in systems that need to switch between rapid response and ultra-precision low speed positioning, such as the drive regulator of optical lens group in lithography.