Side clamping type micro clamp

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of micro-clamps, and discloses a side clamping type micro-clamp which comprises a flexible hinge structure and a driving mechanism, the flexible hinge structure adopts an integrated sheet design and is mainly composed of a sheet body I, a sheet body II and a middle sheet body located between the sheet body I and the sheet body II; one end of the sheet body is provided with a movable jaw, two ends of the sheet body are provided with fixed jaws, and the movable jaw and the fixed jaws form a clamping gap; the middle sheet body is connected with the first sheet body and the second sheet body through a first flexible body and a second flexible body respectively, the extending direction of the first flexible body is parallel to the clamping gap, and the extending direction of the second flexible body is perpendicular to the clamping gap; when the driving mechanism drives the middle sheet body to move in the width direction of the clamping gap, movement is transmitted to the movable jaw through cooperative deformation of the first flexible body and the second flexible body. According to the side clamping type micro clamp, the driving direction is consistent with the clamping direction, millimeter-level large-stroke movement is achieved, and the side clamping type micro clamp has the outstanding advantages of being compact in structure, free of damage and long in service life.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of micro clamp technology, and in particular to a side-clamp micro clamp. Background Technology

[0002] As a key actuator in micro-nano manipulation and micro-assembly systems, micro-grippers are widely used in fields such as bioengineering, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) assembly, fiber optic docking, and precision measurement. Their core task is to perform non-destructive, high-precision gripping, handling, and positioning operations on micro- and millimeter-scale objects (such as microparticles and fiber cores).

[0003] There are two main types of core mechanisms for realizing the movement of micro-grippers: rigid kinematic pairs and flexible hinge mechanisms. Rigid kinematic pairs (such as guide rails and hinges) inevitably have friction, wear, and backlash. This not only leads to a decrease in motion accuracy and vibration, but also causes wear debris to contaminate the clean operating environment, making it difficult to meet the requirements of high-precision micro-nano manipulation.

[0004] While flexible hinge mechanisms utilize the elastic deformation of materials to eliminate friction and backlash, achieving wear-free and high-precision motion, existing designs still have significant limitations: Flexible hinge designs (such as lever-type and bridge-type amplification mechanisms) have a clamping direction (jaw opening and closing) perpendicular to the drive input direction. This motion conversion not only introduces parasitic motion but also limits effective displacement output in a single compact dimension, making it difficult to achieve millimeter-level large-stroke clamping. Furthermore, to achieve motion decoupling and displacement amplification, multi-stage, complex flexible mechanisms are often required in series, resulting in a loose overall structure and large size, making it difficult to integrate into confined operating spaces (such as biological culture dishes or inside MEMS chips). Moreover, while simple parallel four-bar mechanisms can ensure that the clamping direction is consistent with the drive direction, their displacement amplification capability is limited. To obtain a large stroke, it is often necessary to increase the drive input or sacrifice structural stiffness, which contradicts the control objectives of high precision and high stability. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Therefore, the purpose of this invention is to overcome the various limitations of the rigid kinematic pair mechanism and flexible hinge mechanism used in the existing side-clamping micro clamps, and to provide a side-clamping micro clamp with the driving direction consistent with the clamping direction, and to achieve millimeter-level large stroke movement, while having the outstanding advantages of compact structure, no damage and long service life.

[0006] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this invention provides a side-clamping micro clamp, comprising a flexible hinge structure and a drive mechanism connected thereto, wherein the flexible hinge structure includes: One piece of material has a movable jaw formed at one end; The second piece has a fixed jaw at one end, and the fixed jaw and the movable jaw are arranged opposite each other to form a clamping gap. An intermediate sheet is located between sheet one and sheet two, and deformation gaps are formed between the intermediate sheet and sheet one, and between the intermediate sheet and sheet two. A flexible body 1 is disposed within the deformation gap and connects the sheet 1 and the intermediate sheet 1; wherein the extending direction of the flexible body 1 is parallel to the clamping gap; A second flexible body is disposed within the deformation gap and connects the second sheet and the intermediate sheet; wherein the extending direction of the second flexible body is perpendicular to the clamping gap; The sheet body one, sheet body two, intermediate sheet body, flexible body one and flexible body two are formed into an integral sheet structure; The driving mechanism drives the intermediate plate to move along the width of the clamping gap, and transmits the movement to the moving jaws through the deformation of the first and second flexible bodies, causing the moving jaws to displace and change the width of the clamping gap.

[0007] Preferably, the displacement of the moving jaws is at least 5 times the displacement of the intermediate sheet.

[0008] Preferably, when the movable jaw moves to the position where the clamping gap matches the width of the clamping target, the normal pressure of the movable jaw and the displacement of the intermediate piece satisfy a linear relationship, wherein the linear relationship is: F = 17.979U + 0.0021; F represents the normal force exerted by the moving jaws on the target being clamped; U represents the displacement of the intermediate plate.

[0009] Preferably, a limiting structure is provided in the deformation gap between the intermediate sheet and the second sheet to constrain the overtravel movement of the intermediate sheet.

[0010] Preferably, the drive mechanism includes: A fixing body has a receiving cavity inside, and the top of the receiving cavity is open; the first sheet and the second sheet are fixed to the fixing body; A movable body is located at the top of the accommodating cavity and is slidably connected to the fixed body; the intermediate piece is fixed to the movable body; A driving body is disposed within the accommodating cavity and contacts the moving body via a friction body.

[0011] Preferably, the driving body includes: A flexible frame is supported on the bottom wall of the accommodating cavity and connected to the fixed body; the flexible frame has a first groove and a second groove recessed on the side facing the moving body; a deformable portion is formed in the area between the first groove and the second groove of the flexible frame; A piezoelectric drive block is disposed in the first groove; and there is a gap between the piezoelectric drive block and the moving body. The friction element is disposed within the second groove and contacts the moving body; The friction body transmits the displacement of the piezoelectric drive block to the moving body.

[0012] Preferably, the driving body further includes an adjustment component disposed near the deformable portion, and the adjustment component is activated to change the positive pressure of the friction body contacting the moving body.

[0013] Preferably, the flexible frame has an inclined surface on the side facing the cavity wall; a wedge block is provided between the inclined surface of the flexible frame and the fixing body; the wedge block is disposed in the cavity and its vertical surface is attached to the cavity wall, and the surfaces opposite the vertical surfaces press against the inclined surface of the flexible frame.

[0014] Preferably, the bottom of the fixed body is provided with a mounting hole, which communicates with the receiving cavity; the adjusting component passes through the mounting hole, and rotating the adjusting component pushes the flexible frame to change the positive pressure of the friction body contacting the moving body.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the above-described technical solution of the present invention has the following advantages: The side-clamping micro clamp described in this invention has a driving direction that is consistent with the clamping direction. The effective clamping displacement parallel to the driving direction can reach a large stroke movement at the millimeter level, and it has the outstanding advantages of compact structure, no damage and long service life.

[0016] Among them, the integral flexible hinge structure based on the thin sheet is used as the core of motion transmission and amplification, which completely eliminates the friction and backlash caused by traditional kinematic pairs, realizes pure elastic deformation drive, and combined with the inherent nanoscale resolution of the piezoelectric actuator, the opening and closing motion of the clamp has extremely high positioning accuracy and stability.

[0017] By setting the extension direction of flexible body one to be parallel to the clamping gap and the extension direction of flexible body two to be perpendicular to the clamping gap, an efficient motion conversion mechanism is formed. When the intermediate piece is driven along the width direction of the clamping gap, flexible body two mainly undergoes bending deformation to transmit the displacement of the intermediate piece; at the same time, flexible body one mainly undergoes stretching / compression deformation to amplify the displacement and efficiently transmit it to the moving jaws, while ensuring that the movement direction of the moving jaws is parallel to the driving direction of the intermediate piece. This significantly amplifies the effective displacement of the clamps in the driving direction, reaching millimeter-level stroke, thus solving the problem of stroke loss caused by motion direction coupling or conversion in existing flexible hinges.

[0018] The sheet body 1, sheet body 2, intermediate sheet body, flexible body 1, and flexible body 2 form an integrated thin-film structure, achieving a high degree of integration of driving, transmission, and clamping functions. This not only eliminates assembly errors and loose structures inherent in complex mechanisms but also achieves extremely high structural rigidity and motion stability. Furthermore, its flat and compact thin-film shape allows for extremely convenient integration and application in confined spaces such as biological culture dishes and the interiors of MEMS chips, solving the problems of traditional mechanisms being too large and structurally complex.

[0019] Since the entire motion transmission process is based on the elastic deformation of the material, its mechanical behavior is continuous and linear. Therefore, the output displacement of the moving jaws and the drive input displacement, as well as the output clamping force, exhibit a good and predictable linear or quasi-linear relationship. This makes it possible to precisely control the clamping force by controlling the drive displacement, thus achieving non-destructive and controllable clamping of small objects. Attached Figure Description

[0020] To make the content of this invention easier to understand, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments and accompanying drawings.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the side-clamp micro clamp in a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the flexible hinge structure in the side-clamp micro clamp shown. Figure 3 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the drive mechanism in the side-clamp micro clamp shown. Figure 4 for Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the internal structure of the drive body in the drive mechanism shown. Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the motion of a flexible hinge structure; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the movement of a flexible hinge structure when gripping an object. Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a side-clamp micro clamp gripping objects of different widths; Figure 8 A schematic diagram showing the relationship between the displacement of the middle plate and the normal force at the moving jaw end when a side-clamping micro clamp grips an object with a width equal to the initial jaw width. Figure 9 A schematic diagram showing the relationship between the displacement of the middle plate and the normal force at the moving jaw end when a side-clamping micro clamp grips an object with a width smaller than the initial jaw width. Figure 10 A schematic diagram showing the relationship between the displacement of the middle plate and the normal force at the moving jaw end when a side-clamping micro clamp grips an object whose width is greater than the initial jaw width. Figure 11 A schematic diagram illustrating the piezoelectric stick-slip displacement driving principle of a piezoelectric drive block.

[0022] Explanation of reference numerals in the accompanying drawings: 2-Flexible hinge structure; 21-Plate 1; 211-Moving jaws; 22-Plate 2; 221-Fixed jaws; 23-Intermediate plate; 24-Flexible body 1; 25-Flexible body 2; 26-Limiting structure; 4-Drive mechanism; 41-Fixed body; 411-Accommodating cavity; 412-Mounting hole; 413-Fixing screw one; 414-Raised slide; 42-Moving body; 421-Recessed slide groove; 43-Drive body; 431-Flexible frame; 4311-First groove; 4312-Second groove; 4313-Deformable part; 432-Piezoelectric drive block; 433-Adjusting component; 434-Inclined surface; 435-Fixing screw two; 436-Screw washer; 44-Friction body; 45-Wedge block. Detailed Implementation

[0023] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, so that those skilled in the art can better understand and implement the present invention. However, the embodiments described are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0024] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the limitations of existing side-clamp micro clamps that use rigid kinematic pairs and flexible hinge mechanisms. This invention discloses a side-clamp micro clamp with the driving direction consistent with the clamping direction, achieving millimeter-level large stroke movement, and possessing the outstanding advantages of compact structure, no damage, and long service life.

[0025] The side-clamping micro clamp disclosed in this invention includes a flexible hinge structure 2 and a drive mechanism 4 connected thereto. The flexible hinge structure 2 is an integral or one-piece structure obtained by processing titanium alloy or stainless steel material with a thickness of 0.5mm-1mm. (Refer to...) Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the processed flexible hinge structure 2 has a structure comprising a first plate 21, a second plate 22, an intermediate plate 23, a first flexible body 24, and a second flexible body 25. One end of the first plate 21 forms a movable jaw 211; one end of the second plate 22 forms a fixed jaw 221. The fixed jaw 221 and the movable jaw 211 are positioned opposite each other to form a clamping gap. Specifically, both the first plate 21 and the second plate 22 have connected horizontal and vertical extensions. The ends of their respective horizontal extensions are fixed, and the ends of their vertical extensions respectively form the fixed jaw 221 and the movable jaw 211, forming a side-clamping micro-clamping structure. The fixed jaw 221 is fixed, and the movable jaw 211 moves along the width direction of the clamping gap (i.e., the clamping direction) under the drive of the drive structure 4 to clamp target objects of different widths.

[0026] Intermediate sheet 23 is located between sheet 1 21 and sheet 22, and deformation gaps are formed between intermediate sheet 23 and sheet 1 21, and between intermediate sheet 23 and sheet 22; flexible body 1 24 is disposed within the deformation gap and connects sheet 1 21 and intermediate sheet 23; wherein, the extension direction of flexible body 1 24 is parallel to the clamping gap; flexible body 25 is disposed within the deformation gap and connects sheet 2 22 and intermediate sheet 23; wherein, the extension direction of flexible body 25 is perpendicular to the clamping gap. The sheet body 21, sheet body 22, intermediate sheet body 23, flexible body 24 and flexible body 25 are formed into an integral thin sheet structure; the driving mechanism 4 drives the intermediate sheet body 23 to move along the width of the clamping gap, and transmits the movement to the moving jaw 211 through the deformation of the flexible body 24 and flexible body 25, causing the moving jaw 211 to move to change the width of the clamping gap.

[0027] The following example of opening the jaws illustrates the action process of a flexible hinge structure: Reference Figure 5 As shown, the intermediate plate 23 moves to the left horizontally under the drive of the drive mechanism 4. The leftward movement of the intermediate plate 23 pulls the flexible body 25. Since the right side of the plate 22 is rigidly fixed, the flexible body 25 itself cannot drive the fixed jaw 221 to move, so it is forced to bend and deform. The bending deformation of the flexible body 25 provides a dynamic and movable lever fulcrum for the entire hinge structure. This bending deformation causes the part connected to the intermediate plate 23 (the power end of the lever) to move to the left. At the same time as the intermediate plate 23 moves to the left, it pulls the plate 2 through the flexible body 24. 1. At this point, the movement of plate 21 is no longer a simple following motion, because its right side is rigidly fixed, and its left end is connected to the middle plate 23 through flexible body 24, while simultaneously being associated with the fixed end through plate 22 and flexible body 25. The bending of flexible body 25 changes the instantaneous center of motion of the entire mechanism. This causes the leftward displacement of the middle plate 23 to be amplified by the composite lever system composed of flexible bodies 24 and 25, and transmitted entirely to the moving jaw 211. Driven by the amplified displacement, the moving jaw 211 generates a larger leftward displacement, and the jaws open. Conversely, when the middle plate 23 moves to the right, it pushes the moving jaw 211 to move to the right, closer to the fixed jaw 221, and the jaws close. Thus, the flexible hinge structure efficiently converts and amplifies a single input displacement into a large displacement in the same direction at a single output end.

[0028] Panel 1 (21), Panel 2 (22), Intermediate Panel 23, Flexible Body 1 (24), and Flexible Body 2 (25) form an integrated thin-film structure, achieving a high degree of integration of driving, transmission, and clamping functions. This not only eliminates assembly errors and loose structures inherent in complex mechanisms but also achieves extremely high structural rigidity and motion stability. Furthermore, its flat and compact thin-film shape allows for extremely convenient integration and application in confined spaces such as biological culture dishes and the interiors of MEMS chips, solving the problems of traditional mechanisms being too large and structurally complex.

[0029] By setting the extension direction of flexible body 1 24 to be parallel to the clamping gap and the extension direction of flexible body 25 to be perpendicular to the clamping gap, an efficient motion conversion mechanism is formed. When the intermediate plate 23 is driven along the width direction of the clamping gap, flexible body 25 mainly undergoes bending deformation to transmit the displacement of the intermediate plate 23. At the same time, flexible body 1 24 mainly undergoes stretching / compression deformation to amplify the displacement and efficiently transmit it to the moving jaw 211, while ensuring that the movement direction of the moving jaw 211 is parallel to the driving direction of the intermediate plate 23. This significantly amplifies the effective displacement of the clamp in the driving direction to at least 5 times, reaching millimeter-level stroke, thus solving the problem of stroke loss caused by motion direction coupling or conversion in existing flexible hinges.

[0030] Furthermore, since the flexible hinge structure is based on the elastic deformation of the material throughout the motion transmission process, its mechanical behavior is continuous and linear. Therefore, the output displacement of the moving jaw 211 exhibits a good and predictable linear or quasi-linear relationship with the drive input displacement and with the output clamping force. This makes it possible to precisely control the clamping force by controlling the drive displacement, thereby achieving non-destructive and controllable clamping of small objects.

[0031] Specifically, when the movable jaw 211 moves to a position where the clamping gap matches the width of the target object, the normal force of the movable jaw 211 and the displacement of the intermediate plate 23 satisfy a linear relationship; that is, after the micro clamp successfully clamps the target object, the normal force of the movable jaw 211 and the displacement of the intermediate plate 23 satisfy a linear relationship, referring to... Figure 8 As shown in Figures 9 and 10, the linear relationship determined through data fitting is as follows: F = 17.979U + 0.0021; F represents the normal force exerted by the moving jaws on the target being clamped; U represents the displacement of the intermediate plate.

[0032] It should be noted that, Figure 8 The displacement of the moving end face shown in 9 and 10 is the displacement of the intermediate sheet.

[0033] The working state that satisfies the above linear relationship is described as follows: Prerequisite: The movable jaw 211 has been moved into position and, together with the fixed jaw 221, has contacted and pressed the target object. At this point, the clamping gap is equal to the width of the target object, and the jaws cannot close further.

[0034] Physical process: In this state, if the drive mechanism continues to push the intermediate plate 23 forward (generating displacement U), this displacement can no longer be converted into the further closing motion of the moving jaw 211, but will be entirely converted into the internal elastic deformation of the flexible body 1 24 and the flexible body 25. According to Hooke's law, this elastic deformation will be directly and linearly converted into the normal pressure F applied to the target object.

[0035] Traditional clamps often only control the position (opening degree) but cannot know or control the actual clamping force, which can easily lead to excessive force damaging the object or insufficient force resulting in an unstable grip. This solution directly and precisely controls the final output quantity—the clamping force F—by controlling an easily measurable input quantity—the displacement U of the intermediate sheet. This upgrades the micro clamp from blind gripping to sensored and controllable gripping. In fields such as bioengineering (manipulating cells and embryos) and MEMS assembly (manipulating microlenses and structures), the objects being manipulated are extremely fragile and have strict upper limits on the clamping force. Utilizing this linear relationship, the operator can pre-calculate the displacement required to achieve the target safe clamping force and then precisely drive the clamp to ensure that the clamping force is always limited within the safe threshold, fundamentally avoiding crushing or damaging small and fragile objects due to excessive force.

[0036] Based on the above embodiments, a limiting structure 26 is further provided within the deformation gap between the intermediate sheet 23 and the second sheet 22, thereby constraining the overtravel movement of the intermediate sheet 23. (Refer to...) Figure 2 As shown, a limiting groove can be provided on the intermediate plate 23, and a corresponding limiting protrusion can be provided on the second plate 22, and vice versa. When the intermediate plate 23 moves excessively, the side of the limiting groove will contact the limiting protrusion, mechanically preventing further movement. During normal operation, the displacement of the intermediate plate 23 is controlled within a safe range. There is a certain gap between the limiting groove and the limiting protrusion of the limiting structure, and they do not contact each other, thus not affecting the normal deformation and movement of the flexible hinge structure. When the drive mechanism malfunctions (such as control failure, signal interference, or human error) and the displacement of the intermediate plate 23 exceeds the maximum allowable stroke, the limiting groove and the limiting protrusion will collide mechanically. This mechanical contact will directly transmit the subsequent driving force through the rigid structure, instead of being borne by the first flexible body 24 and the second flexible body 25, thereby forcibly stopping the overtravel movement of the intermediate plate 23.

[0037] The limiting structure 26 acts as a safety valve, ensuring through mechanical intervention that the strain of the flexible hinge structure is always limited within a safe elastic range, fundamentally preventing permanent damage caused by overload. This not only protects the flexible hinge structure but also indirectly protects the piezoelectric actuator. Overtravel motion can cause excessive compressive or tensile stress on the piezoelectric ceramic, affecting its performance and lifespan. The limiting structure 26 prevents excessive displacement, also protecting the expensive piezoelectric actuator.

[0038] Based on the above embodiments, refer to Figure 1 As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the driving mechanism 4 includes a fixed body 41, a movable body 42, and a driving body 43. The fixed body 41 has a receiving cavity 411, and the top of the receiving cavity 411 is open. Plate 1 21 and plate 2 22 are fixed to the fixed body 41. The movable body 42 is located at the top of the receiving cavity 411 and is slidably connected to the fixed body 41. The intermediate plate 23 is fixed to the movable body 42. The driving body 43 is disposed in the receiving cavity 411 and contacts the movable body 42 through a friction body 44. Specifically, plate 1 21, plate 2 22, and intermediate plate 23 are respectively fixed to the fixed body 41 and the movable body 42 by fixing screw 1 413.

[0039] This drive mechanism constitutes a highly integrated linear drive module based on friction transmission. Its core lies in transmitting the precise displacement of the piezoelectric actuator to the moving body 42 through friction, thereby driving the micro-gripper. Its structure can be decomposed as follows: The fixed body 41 serves as the supporting foundation and outer shell of the entire drive mechanism. Its internal accommodating cavity 411 houses and protects the core drive components. Its top opening allows the moving body 42 to pass through and contact the internal drive body 43, while also providing a movement channel. Specifically, the inner wall of the fixed body 41 is provided with a raised slide rail 414, and the moving body 42 is provided with a recessed slide groove 421. The raised slide rail 414 and the recessed slide groove 421 cooperate, allowing the moving body 42 to slide and connect with the fixed body 41 at the top of the accommodating cavity 411. The fixed ends of the first microgripper 21 and the second microgripper 22 are both mounted on the fixed body 41. This ensures that the fixed clamp 221 side of the microgripper is absolutely stationary, providing a stable reference point for the entire system.

[0040] The moving body 42, as the output unit of the drive mechanism 4, directly transmits linear motion to the intermediate plate 23 of the micro clamp. The drive end of the intermediate plate 23 is fixedly mounted on the moving body 42. The moving body 42 is connected to the fixed body 41 through the sliding structure at its bottom and is restricted to translating only in a single direction (the drive direction of the micro clamp).

[0041] The driving body 43 is completely integrated within the accommodating cavity 411 of the fixed body, resulting in a compact structure. It directly contacts the inner surface of the moving body 42 facing the accommodating cavity 411 via a friction body 44. When the piezoelectric element inside the driving body 43 is excited, it generates a tiny, precise displacement. Through the internal structural design of the driving body 43, this tiny displacement is converted into stepping motion through alternating static and sliding friction. This stepping motion is transmitted to the moving body 42, thereby driving the moving body 42 and its connected micro-clamp intermediate plate 23 to perform high-precision linear motion. Traditional piezoelectric direct drive strokes are very short, while the friction drive method of this solution essentially accumulates the high-frequency, tiny displacements of the piezoelectric element, thus achieving a theoretically infinite (actually millimeter-level) stroke, breaking through the limitation of the piezoelectric ceramic's own expansion and contraction.

[0042] By mounting both the first microgripper plate 21 and the second microgripper plate 22 on the fixed body 41, the absolute stability of the clamping reference is ensured; the drive is applied to the middle plate 23 of the microgripper only through the moving body 42, realizing unidirectional input of the drive, avoiding complex force flow paths, reducing parasitic motion and mutual interference, and making the movement of the clamp purer and more stable.

[0043] Specifically, refer to Figure 4 As shown, the driving body 43 includes a flexible frame 431 and a piezoelectric driving block 432. The flexible frame 431 is supported on the bottom wall of the accommodating cavity 411 and connected to the fixed body 41. Specifically, the flexible frame 431 is fixedly connected to the fixed body 41 by a fixing screw 435 and a screw washer 436. The flexible frame 431 has a first groove 4311 and a second groove 4312 recessed on the side facing the moving body 42. A deformable part 4313 is formed in the area between the first groove 4311 and the second groove 4312 of the flexible frame 431. The piezoelectric driving block 432 is disposed in the first groove 4311 and there is a gap between the piezoelectric driving block 432 and the moving body 42. The friction body 44 is disposed in the second groove 4312 and contacts the moving body 42. The friction body 44 transmits the displacement of the piezoelectric driving block 432 to the moving body 42.

[0044] Reference Figure 11 As shown, the driving process of the driver is as follows: A piezoelectric actuator is applied with a zigzag voltage. The direction of movement of the moving body towards the flexible hinge structure (jaws opening) is defined as positive, and the direction of movement away from the flexible hinge structure (jaws closing) is defined as negative. From 0 to t1, the voltage slowly rises to its maximum value, causing the piezoelectric actuator to slowly extend and drive the friction body to move in the opposite direction. The displacement is then transferred to the moving body through the static friction between the friction body and the moving body, with both experiencing a combined reverse displacement of D1. From t1 to t2, the voltage rapidly drops to zero, the piezoelectric actuator shortens and returns to its original position, and the friction body quickly resets to its initial position. The moving body, due to inertia, retracts more slowly, generating sliding friction with the friction body, and remains at displacement D2 at t2. This is the piezoelectric stick-slip effect. This zigzag voltage is continuously and cyclically applied to the piezoelectric actuator, accumulating the reverse displacement of the moving body (from D2 to D4 and then to D6 in the diagram), allowing the moving body to drive the intermediate plate to continuously and precisely reverse, achieving jaw closure. Similarly, when the piezoelectric drive block is continuously and cyclically loaded with a voltage that rises rapidly and then falls slowly, the moving body can drive the intermediate plate to make continuous and precise positive displacement, ultimately achieving the jaw opening function.

[0045] The displacement of each step is determined by the precise extension and retraction of the piezoelectric drive block 432, with a resolution down to the nanometer level. The force driving the moving body 42 does not come directly from the piezoelectric drive block 432, but from the elastic potential energy stored in the deformable part 4313 of the flexible frame 431, combined with the sliding friction or static friction generated between the friction body and the moving body due to the different speeds of motion.

[0046] The flexible frame 431 is a single component that simultaneously undertakes four major functions: support body, preload generator, elastic energy storage device, and motion conversion mechanism. The layout of the first groove 4311 and the second groove 4312 physically separates the drive piezoelectric block 432 and the friction body 44, but functionally they are tightly coupled through the deformable part 4313. This integrated design greatly simplifies the structure, reduces the number of parts and assembly complexity, and realizes the miniaturization of the drive module.

[0047] Based on the above embodiments, referring to Figure 4 As shown, the driving body 43 also includes an adjustment component 433, which is disposed near the deformable part 4313. Activating the adjustment component 433 changes the normal pressure of the friction body 44 in contact with the moving body 42. Typically, it is screwed in from the outside of the fixed body 41, with its end plane pressing against the lower left corner of the friction body 44 inside the flexible frame 431.

[0048] When the adjusting component 433 is screwed in, it pushes upwards to the lower left corner of the friction body 44 within the flexible frame 431, forcing a controllable elastic deformation in that area. This deformation is transmitted through the structure of the flexible frame 431 to the second groove 4312 area supporting the friction body 44, causing the friction body 44 to be pressed more tightly against the bottom surface of the moving body 42. Ultimately, the contact pressure between the friction body 44 and the moving body 42 is increased. Conversely, unscrewing the adjusting component 433 reduces this contact pressure. By adjusting the component 433, the operator can precisely tune the contact pressure to the optimal operating point after device assembly or under different working conditions, thereby obtaining the maximum driving thrust, the highest efficiency, or the most stable movement speed, achieving optimal driving performance.

[0049] Based on the above embodiments, referring to Figure 4 As shown, the flexible frame 431 has an inclined surface 434 on the side facing the side wall of the accommodating cavity 411; a wedge block 45 is provided between the inclined surface 434 of the flexible frame 431 and the fixing body 41; the wedge block 45 is disposed in the accommodating cavity 411, and its vertical surface is attached to the cavity wall of the accommodating cavity 411, and its inclined surface presses against the inclined surface 434 of the flexible frame 431. The wedge block 45 converts the vertical pressure into a horizontal thrust. When a downward force is applied to the wedge block 45 from above (this force may come from the clamping during assembly or the constraint created by fixing with glue), the wedge block 45 will move downward. Since the inclined surface of the wedge block 45 is in contact with the inclined surface 434 of the flexible frame 431, according to the inclined surface principle, this downward movement will be converted into a horizontal component force. This horizontal force pushes the vertical surface of the wedge block 45 to press tightly against the cavity wall of the fixed body 41. At the same time, the reaction force also presses the flexible frame 431 strongly against the other side of the receiving cavity 411. The inclined plane mechanism amplifies the assembly fastening force into a horizontal preload. This force ensures that the entire drive body 43, consisting of the flexible frame 431, the piezoelectric drive block 432, and the friction body 44, is stably fixed within the receiving cavity 411 of the fixed body 41, forming an extremely stable support foundation. During assembly, once the wedge block 45 is pressed in, it automatically calibrates the flexible frame 431 to the correct position and applies the preload. In other words, the wedge block 45 and the flexible frame 431 achieve self-locking using their structural characteristics, and both are fixedly placed within the receiving cavity 411.

[0050] Based on the above embodiment, the bottom of the fixed body 41 is provided with a mounting hole 412, which is connected to the accommodating cavity 411; the adjusting component 433 is inserted into the mounting hole 412, and the adjusting component 433 is rotated to push the flexible frame 431 to change the positive pressure of the friction body 44 and the moving body 42.

[0051] A dedicated mounting hole 412 is provided at the bottom of the fixed body 41, which leads directly from the outside to the internal receiving cavity 411. The adjusting component 433 preferably uses an adjusting screw, which passes through this mounting hole 412 from the outside of the fixed body 41, with its front end (head) extending into the receiving cavity 411 and pressing against a specific position on the flexible frame 431 (usually at the lower left corner of the friction body 44). When the adjusting screw is screwed in (tightened) from the outside, the screw moves forward, pushing against the flexible frame 431, forcing a controllable elastic deformation of the lower left corner of the friction body 44 on the flexible frame 431. This deformation is transmitted through the structure of the flexible frame 431 to the area supporting the friction body 44, ultimately resulting in the friction body 44 being pressed more tightly against the moving body 42, thus increasing the contact pressure between the friction body 44 and the moving body 42. Conversely, when the adjusting screw is unscrewed (loosened), the pushing force decreases, the deformed portion of the flexible frame 431 recovers, thereby reducing the contact pressure. The operator can operate the micro clamp directly from the outside without disassembling the entire clamp, greatly simplifying the process of debugging, maintenance, and performance optimization, making it simple and easy to tune the friction drive performance. In addition, placing the adjustment interface at the bottom of the fixed body 41, compared to placing it on the side or top, is more conducive to preventing dust, debris, and other contaminants from falling directly into the mounting hole 412 due to gravity, thereby protecting the precision components inside the receiving cavity 411. The screw itself also serves to plug the hole.

[0052] Obviously, the above embodiments are merely illustrative examples for clear explanation and are not intended to limit the implementation. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other variations or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is neither necessary nor possible to exhaustively list all possible implementations here. However, obvious variations or modifications derived therefrom are still within the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

1. A side-clamp micro clamp, characterized in that... It includes a flexible hinge structure and a drive mechanism connected thereto, wherein the flexible hinge structure includes: One piece of material has a movable jaw formed at one end; The second piece has a fixed jaw at one end, and the fixed jaw and the movable jaw are arranged opposite each other to form a clamping gap. An intermediate sheet is located between sheet one and sheet two, and deformation gaps are formed between the intermediate sheet and sheet one, and between the intermediate sheet and sheet two. A flexible body 1 is disposed within the deformation gap and connects the sheet 1 and the intermediate sheet 1; wherein the extending direction of the flexible body 1 is parallel to the clamping gap; A second flexible body is disposed within the deformation gap and connects the second sheet and the intermediate sheet; wherein the extending direction of the second flexible body is perpendicular to the clamping gap; The sheet body one, sheet body two, intermediate sheet body, flexible body one and flexible body two are formed into an integral sheet structure; The driving mechanism drives the intermediate plate to move along the width of the clamping gap, and transmits the movement to the moving jaws through the deformation of the first and second flexible bodies, causing the moving jaws to displace and change the width of the clamping gap.

2. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that... The displacement of the moving jaws is at least 5 times the displacement of the intermediate sheet.

3. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that... When the moving jaws move to a position where the clamping gap matches the width of the clamping target, the normal pressure of the moving jaws and the displacement of the intermediate piece satisfy a linear relationship, which is: F = 17.979U + 0.0021; F represents the normal force exerted by the moving jaws on the target being clamped; U represents the displacement of the intermediate plate.

4. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 1, characterized in that... A limiting structure is also provided in the deformation gap between the intermediate sheet and the second sheet to constrain the overtravel movement of the intermediate sheet.

5. The side-clamp micro clamp according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that... The driving mechanism includes: A fixing body has a receiving cavity inside, and the top of the receiving cavity is open; one end of the plate away from its moving jaws is fixed to the fixing body, and the other end of the plate away from its fixing jaws is fixed to the fixing body. A movable body, wherein the middle piece is fixed to the movable body at the end away from the fixed jaw; the movable body covers the opening and is slidably connected to the fixed body; A driving body is disposed within the accommodating cavity and contacts the surface of the moving body facing the accommodating cavity via a friction body.

6. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 5, characterized in that... The driving body includes: A flexible frame is supported on the bottom wall of the accommodating cavity and connected to the fixed body; the flexible frame has a first groove and a second groove recessed on the side facing the moving body; a deformable portion is formed in the area between the first groove and the second groove of the flexible frame; A piezoelectric drive block is disposed in the first groove; and there is a gap between the piezoelectric drive block and the moving body. The friction element is disposed within the second groove; The friction body transmits the displacement of the piezoelectric drive block to the moving body.

7. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 6, characterized in that... The driving body further includes an adjustment component, which is disposed near the deformable part. Touching the adjustment component changes the positive pressure of the friction body contacting the moving body.

8. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 7, characterized in that... The flexible frame has an inclined surface on the side facing the cavity wall; a wedge block is provided between the inclined surface of the flexible frame and the fixing body; the wedge block is disposed in the cavity and its vertical surface is attached to the cavity wall, and the surfaces opposite the vertical surfaces press against the inclined surface of the flexible frame.

9. The side-clamp micro clamp according to claim 7, characterized in that... The bottom of the fixed body is provided with a mounting hole, which is connected to the accommodating cavity; the adjusting component is inserted into the mounting hole, and rotating the adjusting component pushes the flexible frame to change the positive pressure of the friction body contacting the moving body.

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