Development of an Optimized Three-Axis Fast Tool Servo for Ultraprecision Cutting

A three-axis fast tool servo (FTS) with a symmetric structure design to reduce the parasitic motion for realizing high tracking accuracy while maintaining high performances in stiffness and open-loop bandwidth is developed for ultraprecision diamond cutting. Modeling, analysis, and optimization of performances by the finite-element method in six degree-of-freedom are conducted for designing the mechanism. Experiments are carried out to test the performances of the three-axis FTS, which show low parasitic motion, high tracking accuracy, and high dynamic response. With the low tracking error of close-loop control for each axis, complicated trajectory tracking in 3-D space is realized with a tracking error as small as 5 nm. Finally, complicated and irregular microstructures are fabricated by the three-axis FTS to demonstrate the practicability of the FTS.