Error Analysis on the Positioning Accuracy of a Pneumatic Vibration Isolator

A method of error analysis on the positioning accuracy of a pneumatic vibration isolator was proposed. First, the necessity of positioning accuracy was studied, in addition to the key factors associated with positioning accuracy. These analyses indicated that the positioning accuracy of the pneumatic vibration isolator was mainly attributed to the position error of the push button and the gap between the spindle and valve stem. Second, the error model of the positioning accuracy of the pneumatic vibration isolator was established through geometric simplification and geometric calculation. There are different methods used to calculate the position error of the push button for the different valves. Finally, an example analysis evaluating the impact of a specific two-position three-way valve on the positioning accuracy was given by means of error distribution. Experimental results validated the accuracy of the error model and the example analysis. This error model can be used to guide the structural parameter optimization design according to the requirements for positioning accuracy.