In order to implement active control during surface grinding, a workpiece micro-positioning table utilizing a piezoelectric translator has been developed. The workpiece table has a working area of 100´100 mm and a nominal working range of 45 mm. The resolution of the workpiece table is less than 20 nm and the natural frequency is 579.2 Hz. The rigidity of the workpiece table under the open loop condition is approximately 17 N/mm. Under the closed loop condition, the rigidity is better than 400 N/mm. The design of the workpiece table is presented together with considerations to achieve the high dynamic characteristics, where the maximum acceleration is up to 33g (g is the acceleration of gravity). The dynamic models of the piezoelectric translator and the workpiece table have been established. Experimental testing has been carried out, verifying the performance of the workpiece table and the established dynamic models for the workpiece micro-positioning table. Ó 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.