Disclosed is a piezoelectric inertial drive stage including a piezoelectric inertial driver, a slider and a holder. The driver includes a mounting portion for the mounting on the holder, a friction portion coupling to the slider, a flexure portion between the mounting portion and friction portion, a piezoelectric element with a first end bonded to the mounting portion and a second end bonded to a movement portion, the movement portion transferring the motion of the piezoelectric element to the friction portion to drive the slider.

In object to provide a unit of piezoelectric element having a preferable bending strength and preferably used as a part of a driving unit, a unit of piezoelectric element comprising: a multilayer piezoelectric element, having internal electrodes laminated having a piezoelectric body layer in-between and a pair of external electrodes formed on side surfaces extending along laminating direction and electrically connected to the internal electrodes, a wiring part connected to the external electrodes via a solder part, wherein a solder is solidified, a resin part, joining one end surface in the laminating direction of the multilayer piezoelectric element and a mounting surface of a connection member placed to face the one end surface, wherein the resin part is continuous from the one end surface and the mounting surface to the solder part; and the resin part covers the solder part, is provided.

The present invention relates to a piezoelectric driving device 10 capable of moving the movable member 14 along the axis direction engaged in a movable manner to the axial direction with respect to the shaft 16. A pair of the external electrodes 26 and 27 respectively comprises the first external connection part 26a and the second external connection part 27a formed at the lower end face in Z axis direction by being insulated against each other. At the opposing face of the weight member 30 facing against the lower end face of the element 20, the first circuit pattern 36 and the second circuit pattern 37 are formed by being insulated against each other; and the first circuit pattern 36 and the second circuit pattern 37 are respectively connected to the first external connection part 26 and the second external connection part 27 by a metal bonding.

There is provided a drive controller including a determination part that compares a target stop position of a movable body, which is driven by a piezoelectric actuator driven by a piezoelectric element expanded and contracted in response to an applied voltage, with a real position of the movable body acquired on the basis of a position sensor, and determines whether or not the target stop position matches with the real position, and a drive control part that turns off energization of the piezoelectric actuator when the target stop position matches with the real position while the movable body is being driven by the piezoelectric actuator.

A lens drive for driving a lens having, in seriatum along the optical axis of the lens, a base member, an X-axis movable object, a Y-axis movable object and a lens carrier. The base member, the X-axis movable object, the Y-axis movable object and the lens carrier overlap circumferentially around the optical axis in the direction of the optical axis. A first conductive suspension wire connects wiring of the Y-axis movable object and the base member. A second conductive suspension wire connects wiring of the X-axis movable object and the base member. The first and second conductive suspension wires have substantially the same length.

When an actuator using a conventional piezoelectric element is used as a general-purpose mechanical component, such as a linear actuator and an electric cylinder, the absence or weak constraint of a guide in the moving direction causes the problem that the moving direction of a moving member is changed or the moving member is rotated due to a change in the posture of the moving member by an external force. A restraint member presses a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped output shaft, which has high stiffness, thermal conductivity, and lubricity and to which a piezoelectric element is attached at one end, against a guide member so as to limit the degree of freedom to one degree, in order to realize a linear actuator, an electric cylinder, and a force generation device that can be used for general purposes and have a high straight movement property. Also, an output member having a mass that is commensurate with the mass of the piezoelectric element is attached to the other end of the output shaft to improve a generated force, stiffness, and usability.

An inertial drive is disclosed, comprising a length-changeable actuator element (I), a frame element (4) with a support section and with a deformation section, against the contact surfaces of which the actuator element bears, wherein the deformation section has an articulation section (13), a flat spring element (5) which is arranged on the deformation section and has a friction section (3) at the free end thereof, and a friction body (2), which can be driven, in mechanical contact with the friction section. A change in length (S) of the actuating element causes a rotatory movement (D) of the deformation section about the articulation section, which movement is transmitted via the spring element to the friction section for driving the friction body which can be driven.

A gravity center obtained by combining a gravity center of an X-axis movable object, a gravity center of a Y-axis movable object, and a gravity center of a lens carrier is located in a triangle, as vertexes, having a contact portion in which an X-axis friction engagement portion comes into contact with an X-axis drive shaft, a contact portion in which a first X-axis support portion comes into contact with an X-axis movable object holding portion, and a contact portion in which a second X-axis support portion comes into contact with the X-axis movable object holding portion.

A linear or rotary table is provided which can be moved in two dimensions having a stator and at least one upper slider plate movable relative to the stator in two independent translational directions or two independent rotary directions, and at least two piezoelectric linear drives for moving the upper slider plate in the two translational directions or two rotary directions, wherein a central slider plate is arranged between the stator and the upper slider plate, and the at least two piezoelectric linear drives are each attached to the stator to move the upper slider plate in the two translational directions or two rotary directions, and wherein at least one piezoelectric linear drive attached to the stator is in contact with the upper slider plate through an opening in the central slider plate to move the upper slider plate in a first translational direction or a first rotary direction.

A piezoelectric stepper drive includes a piezoelectric drive apparatus with at least two drive sections, each acted upon by at least two piezoelectric actuators, and a driven member which is advanced by at least one of the drive sections when control voltages are applied to the actuators. The drive apparatus is configured approximately in the shape of a triangle, at the tip of which the drive sections are arranged. At least one of the drive sections is biased against the driven member, in the absence of control voltages applied to the actuators, such that the drive section blocks advance of the driven member, where each of the drive sections is mounted individually resilient relative to a base of the triangle.