Compliant mechanism design course

Compliant Mechanisms (CM) are proposed to achieve macroscopic linear and rotary motions without friction, wear, backlash, and with extremely high fatigue performance thanks to the elastic deformation of flexible structures. They are used in harsh environments such as vacuum, cryogenic and space where friction is to be avoided while high-precision and a long lifetime are required.

While the potential of CM in space has already been proven over many years, their development can still be challenging. This course will address the complete development aspects for compliant mechanisms, comprising of design and analysis, manufacturing, assembly and testing focused on space systems. The recent advances on CM brought by additive manufacturing will also be presented.

This course is intended for engineers involved in the design, manufacturing and testing, for managers and anyone else interested in having a practical knowledge of the advantages and challenges of compliant mechanisms.

The course will cover the following subjects:

• Introduction to compliant mechanisms
• Presentation of space applications using compliant mechanisms
• Design principles and methodology
• Finite Element Analysis guidelines
• Material and lifetime aspects
• Subtractive and Additive Manufacturing guidelines
• Failure modes and preventions
• Integration and testing guidelines
• Sensor and actuator selection and integration
• Specific control aspects for compliant systems
• ECSS standards