Enhancing Amplification in Compliant Mechanisms: Optimization of Plastic Types and Injection Conditions

This study surveys the impacts of injection parameters on the deformation rate of the injected flexure hinge made from ABS, PP, and HDPE. The flexure hinges are generated with different filling time, filling pressure, filling speed, packing time, packing pressure, cooling time, and melt temperature. The amplification ratio of the samples between different injection parameters and different plastic types is measured and compared to figure out the optimal one with a high amplification ratio. The results show that the relationship between the input and output data of the ABS, PP, and HDPE flexure hinges at different injection molding parameters is a linear relation. Changing the material or many injection molding parameters of the hinge could lead to a great impact on the hinge’s performance. However, changing each parameter does not lead to a sudden change in the input and output values. Each plastic material has different optimal injection parameters and displacement behaviors. With the ABS flexure hinge, the filling pressure case has the greatest amplification ratio of 8.81, while the filling speed case has the lowest value of 4.81. With the optimal injection parameter and the input value of 105 µm, the ABS flexure hinge could create a maximum average output value of 736.6 µm. With the PP flexure hinge, the melt temperature case achieves the greatest amplification ratio of 6.73, while the filling speed case has the lowest value of 4.1. With the optimal injection parameter and the input value of 128 µm, the PP flexure hinge could create a maximum average output value of 964.8 µm. The average amplification ratio values of all injection molding parameters are 6.85, 5.41, and 4.01, corresponding to ABS, PP, and HDPE flexure hinges. Generally, the ABS flexure hinge has the highest amplification ratios, followed by the PP flexure hinge. The HDPE flexure hinge has the lowest amplification ratios among these plastic types. With the optimal injection parameter and the input value of 218 µm, the HDPE flexure hinge could create a maximum average output value of 699.8 µm. The results provide more insight into plastic flexure hinges and broaden their applications by finding the optimal injection parameters and plastic types.