The performance of a mechanism is closely correlated with the accuracy of the surfaces that make up the mechanical joint. The most common approach used to study these surfaces is based on strong assumptions about their behavior. Form errors and roughness are neglected and the surfaces are assumed infinitely rigid. The main objective of this work is to develop an original approach to study the impact of form errors on the assemblies. It is mainly based on a methodology and associated tools to predict which defects will optimize or penalize the functional requirements of the assembly. In this manuscript, two case studies are proposed. In a first step, a plate flange (ball and cylinder joints added to a planar joint) is designed to validate the overall approach. Modal decomposition of defects, sum-surface concept, the determination of a stable contact area and quantification of contact deformation of surfaces correspond to the main theoretical tools used in this framework. The influence of form errors on the positioning accuracy is quantified by a clearance domain. Comparisons between theoretical approach and experimental setup are used to validate the models. Subsequently, a spherical joint is considered corresponding to a total hip implant with ceramic material. The objective of this study is to identify which type of form errors can impact the appearance of the squeaking phenomena. The same procedure is followed as for the first example. In parallel, several experimental devices are designed to validate the relevance of this approach. Specific measurements provide some key elements to understand the behavior of the implant subject to squeaking. This work is part of a collaboration between three laboratories : SYMME Annecy, I2M-IMC Bordeaux, and Tural company located in Marignier (74), an industrial research laboratory working on medical implants.
