The design and analysis of a novel lapping loading device using a compliant mechanism

Abstract

A lapping loading device that makes use of a compliant mechanism for a novel ring-type tapered roller lapping method is proposed in this paper. A three-part guide post structure is designed using the new type of tapered roller processing principle. For the purpose of designing and analyzing of the three-part guide post structure, a pseudo-rigid-body model for the mechanism of the three-part guide post is developed. Based on the pseudo-rigid-body model, the loading mechanisms and the mechanical behavior of the three-part guide post structure were discussed in this work simultaneously. The computation model of the lapping force in the machining of the tapered roller lapping was developed and validated through the finite element method and experiment results. This shows that the developed computation model possess high enough accuracy to effectively control the lapping loading force. This research established the viability of using the compliant mechanism in the field of the tapered roller processing technique.