A clamping mechanism having: a drive; a shaft connected to the drive; an eccentric hub that is driven to rotate by the shaft; a fixed support structure that supports the eccentric hub such that the eccentric hub can rotate; and a moving support structure that is connected to the eccentric hub such that the moving support structure is driven substantially linearly based on rotational motion of the eccentric hub and serves to clamp an object between the moving support structure and a fixed structure adjacent to the moving support structure. A clamping system is provided having, a single drive; a shaft connected to the drive; and a plurality of clamping mechanisms.