Anti-Backlash Mechanisms for Cycloidal Drive Robotic Actuators: Design and Evaluation

We design and experimentally evaluate two anti-backlash mechanisms for cycloidal reducers. The two mechanisms are integrated into variations of a proposed design of quasi-direct drive actuator. Three prototypes are realised to compare the two mechanisms against the baseline design. We evaluate the effectiveness of the anti-backlash mechanisms under varying preload with measurements of friction, backlash, and stiffness. The results demonstrate that the anti-backlash mechanisms are effective at reducing backlash by approx. 2-3x, at the expected expense of increased friction (< 2x).