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Why Machines That Bend Are Better



Veritasium

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I visited the Compliant Mechanisms Research group at Brigham Young University and spoke to Professor Larry Howell:
https://www.compliantmechanisms.byu.edu

At the above link, you can download 3D-print files to make some of the objects in the video, plus learn more about compliant mechanisms.

What I learned about compliant mechanisms I summarize in the 8 P’s of compliant mechanisms:

1. Part count (reduced by having flexible parts instead of springs, hinges)
2. Productions processes (many, new, different enabled by compliant designs)
3. Price (reduced by fewer parts and different production processes)
4. Precise Motion (no backlash, less wear, friction)
5. Performance (no outgassing, doesn’t require lubricant)
6. Proportions (reduced through different production processes)
7. Portability (lightweight due to simpler, reduced part count designs)
8. Predictability (devices are reliable over a long period of time)

Special thanks to Patreon supporters:
Donal Botkin, James M Nicholson, Michael Krugman, Nathan Hansen, Ron Neal, Stan Presolski, Terrance Shepherd

Animation by Alan Chamberlain

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39 thoughts on “Why Machines That Bend Are Better
  1. Just drop a nuke on the compliant joint then we won't have to listen to bs anymore, about how some plastic piece of crap can stop a nuke, my ears are hurting already

  2. I guess because the movement can be like shock absorber, and the stuffer the materials the more likely they would received damage when hit or in action

  3. The fatigue limit of most materials is the reason bending components are avoided. The bending region becomes a stress pit.
    But maybe with modern materials, we might overcome the problem.

  4. I can see this having applications in robotics for joints. I've always wondered how we might replicate the kind of engineering happening in insects and plants and feel this gets us quite a bit closer!

  5. What if a compliant device were stored in its "sprung" for a sufficiently long time to loose their Shape Memory. There are warnings on Sliding Weight Scales in your doctor's office as well a Torque Wrench in your mechanic's garage that say something like "Do not store in the loaded position". Would I be wrong to simplify the flexible portions in compliant devices as springs and subject to these spring-like behaviors?

  6. Sometimes I realize there are so much things I can learn that I wonder if I should just give it all up and go to a remote village, with no electricity. Thanks for sharing

  7. Tell that to Apple’s “Butterfly Switch” technology

    & these guys could give the folks at BMW, Mercedes, & VW some lessons on simple yet robust machine parts

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