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US 12,210,294 B2Granted
Actuator assemblies comprising piezo actuators or electrostrictive actuators
AssigneeASML Netherlands B.V.
InventorsHans Butler, Bas Jansen
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An actuator assembly including a first piezo actuator and a second piezo actuator. The piezo actuator has a correction unit configured to determine an output voltage difference representing a difference between a voltage at the output terminal of the first piezo actuator and a voltage at the output terminal of the second piezo actuator, and a first power correction for correcting the first power signal and/or a second power correction for correcting the second power signal, based on the output voltage difference.
Claims20
An actuator assembly for moving a load, the actuator assembly comprising:
- a first piezo or electrostrictive actuator having an input terminal configured to receive a first power signal and an output terminal, wherein the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator is configured to expand or contract in a first direction when a voltage difference is present between the input terminal and the output terminal,
- a second piezo or electrostrictive actuator having an input terminal configured to receive a second power signal and an output terminal, wherein the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator is configured to expand or contract in a second direction when a voltage difference is present between the input terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator and the output terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, wherein the first and second piezo or electrostrictive actuators are not in series electrical connection, and
- a correction unit, the correction unit:
- comprising a first input terminal connected to the output terminal of the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator, and a second input terminal connected to the output terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, and
- configured to determine:
- an output voltage difference representing a difference between a voltage at the output terminal of the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator and a voltage at the output terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, and
- a first power correction to correct the first power signal and/or a second power correction to correct the second power signal, based on the output voltage difference.
4 more elements
An actuator assembly for moving a load, the actuator assembly comprising:
- a first piezo or electrostrictive actuator having a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator is configured to expand or contract in a first direction when a voltage difference is present between the first terminal and the second terminal,
- a second piezo or electrostrictive actuator having a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator is configured to expand or contract in a second direction when a voltage difference is present between the first terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator and the second terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, wherein the first and second piezo or electrostrictive actuators are not in series electrical connection, and
- a power unit, the power unit comprising a set point terminal configured to receive a set point representative of a desired movement of the load, and configured to:
- generate a power signal for the first and second piezo or electrostrictive actuators based on the set point,
- determine a corrected power signal based on the power signal and on an output voltage difference representing a difference between a voltage at the second terminal of the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator and a voltage at the second terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, and
- provide the corrected power signal to the first terminal of the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator and/or to the first terminal of the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator, to cause the first piezo or electrostrictive actuator to expand and the second piezo or electrostrictive actuator to contract together, or vice versa.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.