Stewart-inspired vibration isolation mechanisms for precision equipment: Current status and future research trend

Abstract

Multi-directional vibration isolation is the core technology for guaranteeing the high performance of precision equipment. However, the variability of working conditions and the complexity of disturbance sources pose significant challenges for designing multiple-degree-of-freedom (multi-DOF) isolation systems with high performance and reliability. Since the emergence of the Stewart parallel mechanism, there has been a growing interest in integrating this mechanism with advanced vibration isolation techniques to enhance the performance of precision equipment on various carriers, leveraging its advantages of six-DOF isolation and structural compactness. The primary contribution of this work is to provide a comprehensive review of recent research on Stewart-inspired isolation mechanisms, focusing on dynamic modeling and parameter design, as well as passive, active, active–passive hybrid, and semi-active vibration isolation methods. Finally, the review presents a brief outlook from the aspects of enhanced parameter design, multifunctional structure, and full-frequency vibration control. In summary, this review focuses on the state-of-the-art Stewart-inspired vibration isolation system (SVIS) developed over the past decade and provides the future research trend, offering guidance for researchers interested in the creative design of Stewart-inspired isolation mechanisms.