scholarly journals Simulation and Optimisation of a Two Degree of Freedom, Planar, Parallel Manipulator

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ben Haughey

<p>Development in pick-and-place robotic manipulators continues to grow as factory processes are streamlined. One configuration of these manipulators is the two degree of freedom, planar, parallel manipulator (2DOFPPM). A machine building company, RML Engineering Ltd., wishes to develop custom robotic manipulators that are optimised for individual pick-and-place applications. This thesis develops several tools to assist in the design process. The 2DOFPPM’s structure lends itself to fast and accurate translations in a single plane. However, the performance of the 2DOFPPM is highly dependent on its dimensions. The kinematics of the 2DOFPPM are explored and used to examine the reachable workspace of the manipulator. This method of analysis also gives insight into the relative speed and accuracy of the manipulator’s end-effector in the workspace. A simulation model of the 2DOFPPM has been developed in Matlab’s® SimMechanics®. This allows the detailed analysis of the manipulator’s dynamics. In order to provide meaningful input into the simulation model, a cubic spline trajectory planner is created. The algorithm uses an iterative approach of minimising the time between knots along the path, while ensuring the kinematic and dynamic limits of the motors and end-effector are abided by. The resulting trajectory can be considered near-minimum in terms of its cycle-time. The dimensions of the 2DOFPPM have a large effect on the performance of the manipulator. Four major dimensions are analysed to see the effect each has on the cycle-time over a standardised path. The dimensions are the proximal and distal arms, spacing of the motors and the height of the manipulator above the workspace. The solution space of all feasible combinations of these dimensions is produced revealing cycle-times with a large degree of variation over the same path. Several optimisation algorithms are applied to finding the manipulator configuration with the fastest cycle-time. A random restart hill-climber, stochastic hill-climber, simulated annealing and a genetic algorithm are developed. After each algorithm’s parameters are tuned, the genetic algorithm is shown to outperform the other techniques.</p>

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ben Haughey

<p>Development in pick-and-place robotic manipulators continues to grow as factory processes are streamlined. One configuration of these manipulators is the two degree of freedom, planar, parallel manipulator (2DOFPPM). A machine building company, RML Engineering Ltd., wishes to develop custom robotic manipulators that are optimised for individual pick-and-place applications. This thesis develops several tools to assist in the design process. The 2DOFPPM’s structure lends itself to fast and accurate translations in a single plane. However, the performance of the 2DOFPPM is highly dependent on its dimensions. The kinematics of the 2DOFPPM are explored and used to examine the reachable workspace of the manipulator. This method of analysis also gives insight into the relative speed and accuracy of the manipulator’s end-effector in the workspace. A simulation model of the 2DOFPPM has been developed in Matlab’s® SimMechanics®. This allows the detailed analysis of the manipulator’s dynamics. In order to provide meaningful input into the simulation model, a cubic spline trajectory planner is created. The algorithm uses an iterative approach of minimising the time between knots along the path, while ensuring the kinematic and dynamic limits of the motors and end-effector are abided by. The resulting trajectory can be considered near-minimum in terms of its cycle-time. The dimensions of the 2DOFPPM have a large effect on the performance of the manipulator. Four major dimensions are analysed to see the effect each has on the cycle-time over a standardised path. The dimensions are the proximal and distal arms, spacing of the motors and the height of the manipulator above the workspace. The solution space of all feasible combinations of these dimensions is produced revealing cycle-times with a large degree of variation over the same path. Several optimisation algorithms are applied to finding the manipulator configuration with the fastest cycle-time. A random restart hill-climber, stochastic hill-climber, simulated annealing and a genetic algorithm are developed. After each algorithm’s parameters are tuned, the genetic algorithm is shown to outperform the other techniques.</p>


2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Chen ◽  
Marc Arsenault

Tensegrity mechanisms are interesting candidates for high-acceleration robotic applications since their use of cables allows for a reduction in the weight and inertia of their mobile parts. In this work, a planar two-degree-of-freedom translational tensegrity mechanism that could be used for pick and place applications is introduced. The mechanism uses a strategic actuation scheme to generate the translational motion as well as to ensure that the cables remain taut at all times. Analytical solutions to the direct and inverse kinematic problems are developed, and the mechanism’s workspace boundaries are computed in both the actuator and Cartesian spaces. The influence of the mechanism’s geometry on the size and shape of the Cartesian workspace are then studied. Based on workspace size only, it is found that the optimal mechanism geometry corresponds to a relatively large ratio between the length of the struts and the width of the base and end-effector.


Author(s):  
Goldie Nejat ◽  
Beno Benhabib

In this paper, a line-of-sight-sensing based guidance methodology is proposed for the localization of robotic end-effectors in high-precision (i.e., micron or sub-micron accuracy) pick-and-place applications. The novelty of the overall system is its applicability to cases that do not allow for the direct proximity measurement of the end-effector’s pose. The proposed iterative guidance algorithm utilizes a pseudo-PD function to minimize the systematic errors of the end-effector, while allowing the pose of the end-effector to converge within the random noise limits. The system has been experimentally tested for a three-dof planar parallel manipulator.


Author(s):  
Meiying Zhang ◽  
Thierry Laliberté ◽  
Clément Gosselin

This paper proposes the use of passive force and torque limiting devices to bound the maximum forces that can be applied at the end-effector or along the links of a robot, thereby ensuring the safety of human-robot interaction. Planar isotropic force limiting modules are proposed and used to analyze the force capabilities of a two-degree-of-freedom planar serial robot. The force capabilities at the end-effector are first analyzed. It is shown that, using isotropic force limiting modules, the performance to safety index remains excellent for all configurations of the robot. The maximum contact forces along the links of the robot are then analyzed. Force and torque limiters are distributed along the structure of the robot in order to ensure that the forces applied at any point of contact along the links are bounded. A power analysis is then presented in order to support the results. Finally, examples of mechanical designs of force/torque limiters are shown to illustrate a possible practical implementation of the concept.


Author(s):  
Gim Song Soh ◽  
J. Michael McCarthy

In this paper, we use seven-position synthesis to add four TS constraints to a TRS serial chain robot and obtain a two degree-of-freedom spatial eight-bar linkage. The TRS chain is an elbow manipulator, similar to a PUMA robot. We synthesize a TS dyad to connect the base of the robot to its forearm, and then we synthesize three TS dyads that connect the upper arm of the robot to its end-effector. The result is a two degree-of-freedom spatial eight-bar linkage that moves through seven prescribed positions. It consists of a TRST loop supporting a 3TS-RS platform, which we denote as a TS-TRS-3TS spatial linkage. We formulate and solve the design equations for the TS dyads, and analyze the resulting eight-bar linkage. An example demonstrates our results.


2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gim Song Soh ◽  
J. Michael McCarthy

This paper presents a procedure that determines the dimensions of two constraining links to be added to a three degree-of-freedom spherical parallel manipulator so that it becomes a one degree-of-freedom spherical (8, 10) eight-bar linkage that guides its end-effector through five task poses. The dimensions of the spherical parallel manipulator are unconstrained, which provides the freedom to specify arbitrary base attachment points as well as the opportunity to shape the overall movement of the linkage. Inverse kinematics analysis of the spherical parallel manipulator provides a set of relative poses between all of the links, which are used to formulate the synthesis equations for spherical RR chains connecting any two of these links. The analysis of the resulting spherical eight-bar linkage verifies the movement of the system.


Author(s):  
Alexandre Lecours ◽  
Cle´ment Gosselin

A reactionless mechanism is one which does not exert any reaction force or moment on its base at all times, for any arbitrary trajectory of the mechanism. This paper addresses the static and dynamic balancing of a two-degree-of-freedom parallel planar mechanism (five-bar mechanism). A simple and effective adaptive balancing method is presented that allows the mechanism to maintain the reactionless condition for a range of payloads. Important proofs concerning the balancing of five-bar mechanisms are also presented. The design of a real mechanism where parallelogram linkages are used to produce pure translations at the end-effector is also presented. Finally, using dynamic simulation software, it is shown that the mechanism is reactionless for arbitrarily chosen trajectories and for a variety of payloads.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Genliang Chen ◽  
Zhuang Zhang ◽  
Lingyu Kong ◽  
Hao Wang

Abstract Passive compliance plays an important role in robot pick-and-place manipulation where large interaction force will be produced in response to small misalignments. In this paper, the authors report on compliance analysis and validation of a novel planar pick-and-place parallel manipulator consisting of a flexible limb. In the proposed manipulator, a planar flexible parallelogram linkage, which is coupled with a rigid one, is introduced to connect the moving and the base platforms. Since the flexible parallelogram linkage is capable of producing large deformation in both the horizontal and the vertical directions, the end effector of the manipulator can generate wide-range motions because of the flexible links. An efficient approach to the large deflection problem of flexible links is used to precisely predict the kinetostatics of the manipulator. Then, a compensation algorithm to the structural deflection of the links can be developed to actively control the position of the parallel manipulator’s end effector. The merit of the proposed flexible manipulator is its intrinsic passive compliance while performing pick-and-place tasks. A prototype is fabricated to conduct experiments for the validation of the proposed idea. The results show that the prototype has acceptable positioning accuracy, even when a large external load is exerted on its end effector. The compliance properties of the proposed flexible manipulator have also been verified in both the horizontal and the vertical directions.


Author(s):  
Hong Zhou ◽  
Shehu T. Alimi ◽  
Aravind Ravindranath ◽  
Hareesh Vepuri

Double-cylinder parallel manipulators are closed-loop two-degree-of-freedom linkages. They are preferred to use because of their simplicity plus the common advantages of parallel manipulators such as high stiffness, load-bearing, operation speed and precision positioning. Like other parallel manipulators, the output motion of double-cylinder parallel manipulators is not as flexible as two-degree-of-freedom serial manipulators. The motion performance analysis plays a critical role for this type of parallel manipulator to be applied successfully. In this paper, the linkage feasibility conditions are established based on the transmission angle. When feasibility conditions are satisfied, there is no dead position during operation. The workspace is generated by using curve-enveloping theory. The singularity characteristics are analyzed within the workspace. The motion performance index contours within the workspace are produced using the condition number of the manipulator Jacobian matrix. The results of this paper provide guidelines to apply this type of parallel manipulator.


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