Design of a Cylindrical Winding Structure for Wireless Power Transfer Used in Rotatory Applications

A cylindrical joint structure for wireless power transfer (WPT) systems is proposed. The transmitter (Tx) and receiver (Rx) coils were wound on hemicylindrical and cylindrical structures, respectively. The Rx coil rotates freely around the axial direction of the Tx coil. Different methods of winding the Tx and Rx coils are given and discussed. Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) around the WPT windings should be lower than the limits set by WPT standards. Therefore, the WPT windings were designed to reduce EMF level and maintain constant power-transfer efficiency (PTE). The design procedures of the windings are discussed in detail. EMF analysis was done under different rotation angles (α). The selected design reduced the variation of the mutual inductance (M). As a result, it maintained a constant PTE while rotating the Rx coil between 0° and 85°. Moreover, leakage magnetic fields (LMFs) near the WPT coils of the chosen design were reduced by 63.6% compared with other winding methods that have the same efficiency. Finally, a prototype was built to validate the proposed idea. Experiment results were in good agreement with the simulation results. The WPT system maintained constant efficiency in spite of the rotation of Rx coil, where efficiency dropped by only 2.15% when the Rx coil rotated between 0° and 85°.

Residual Shank Torque of Bolted Joints: A Numerical Investigation

During operation, the overall stress state of a screw is a function of the direct stress generated by the axial preload, and the external loads, plus the shear stress due to the residual shank torque. All in all, the higher the residual torque, the lower the direct stress the screw can withstand prior to yielding. The residual shank torque stems from the tightening torque, part of which flows through the shank and it is, only partially, released after wrench removal, thanks to springback phenomena involving both the screw and the joined elements. This phenomenon has been tackled in a previous experimental and analytical work by the authors, which investigated the effect of the stiffness and frictional parameters of the joint on the amount of residual shank torque. Such research was based on a sleevelike specimen, and, in fact, the results were strictly applicable to the case of slender cylindrical joint. The present contribution aims at assessing the effect of the same parameters on the residual shank torque, namely: the ratio between the torsional stiffness of the screw and of the plates, the friction coefficients (underhead and thread). Nonetheless, thanks to a novel three-dimensional finite element model, the parameters have been varied in a much wider range, in order to analyze all the likely operating conditions. The model is capable of predicting the residual shank torque for both the cases of slender and thick joint (plate-like joint). The model has been developed in the Ansys R17 software, but the methodology can be extended to other codes with minimal changes.

Solution Region Synthesis Methodology of RCCC Linkages for Four Poses

This paper presents a synthesis methodology of RCCC linkages based on the solution region methodology, R denoting a revolute joint and C denoting a cylindrical joint. The RCCC linkage is usually synthesized via its two defining dyads, RC and CC. For the four poses problem, there are double infinite solutions of the CC dyad, but there is no solution for the RC dyad. However, if a condition is imposed that leads to a coupling of the two dyads, a maximum of four poses can be visited with the RCCC linkage. Unfortunately, until now, there is no methodology to synthesize the RCCC linkage for four given poses besides optimization method. According to the coupling condition above, infinite exact solutions of RCCC linkages can be obtained. For displaying these RCCC linkages, we first build a spherical 4R linkage solution region. Then solutions with circuit and branch defects can be eliminated on this solution region, so that the feasible solution region is obtained. An RCCC linkage can be obtained by using the prescribed spatial positions and selected a value on the feasible solution region. We take values on the feasible solution region by a certain step length and many exact solutions for RCCC linkages can be obtained. Finally we display these solutions on a map, this map is the solution region for RCCC linkages.

Elastodynamics modeling of 4-SPS/CU parallel mechanism with flexible moving platform based on absolute nodal coordinate formulation

The moving platform of the 4-SPS/CU (S is the spherical joint, P is the prismatic joint, C is the cylindrical joint, U is the universal joint) parallel mechanism is treated as a thin-plate element based on the absolute nodal coordinate formulation due to its physical characteristic. In order to eliminate high-frequency modes caused by the coupling between membrane and bending effects, the elastic mid-surface approach is used to evaluate the elastic force of the flexible moving platform. In order to formulate constraint equations between the flexible body and the rigid body, the tangent frame is introduced to define the joint coordinate system that is rigidly attached to the node at the joint, which is convenient for determining the constant vector in the joint coordinate system. The dynamics model of the parallel mechanism with the flexible moving platform is built based on the equation of motion. The simulation results show that the vibration frequency caused by the flexible body will be increased with the increasing stiffness of the material, and the kinematic trajectory and dynamics performance of the parallel mechanism are affected seriously when the smaller Young’s modulus is used, which illustrates that the effect of the flexible moving platform on the dynamic performance of the parallel mechanism should not be ignored.

On RCCC Linkage Motion Generation With Defect Elimination for an Indefinite Number of Precision Positions

A general optimization model for the dimensional synthesis of defect-free revolute-cylindrical-cylindrical-cylindrical joint (or RCCC) motion generators is formulated and demonstrated in this work. With this optimization model, the RCCC dimensions required to approximate an indefinite number of precision positions are calculated. The model includes constraints to eliminate order branch and circuit defects—defects that are common in dyad-based dimensional synthesis. Therefore, the novelty of this work is the development of a general optimization model for RCCC motion generation for an indefinite number of precision positions that simultaneously considers order, branch, and circuit defect elimination. This work conveys both the benefits and drawbacks realized when implementing the optimization model on a personal computer using the commercial mathematical analysis software package matlab.

Dynamic Analysis and Wear Prediction of Planar Five-Bar Mechanism Considering Multiflexible Links and Multiclearance Joints

Effects of wear and member flexibility on the dynamic performance of a planar five-bar mechanism with joint-clearance are investigated. The equation of motion of the mechanism is derived based on the absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF). In order to enhance the accuracy of the contact force, the slope of the load–displacement curve of the cylindrical joint with clearance is used. The contact deformation couples the joint wear to the contact state. The contact force model of Flores and coworkers is improved, by the introduction of the stiffness coefficient. The wear depth is predicted by using the Archard's wear model. Simulations show that the multiclearance joints can generate stronger contact forces relative to single clearance joint case. This leads to more severe wear in the joint. However, the mechanism with multiple flexible links can absorb more of the energy arising from the clearance joint, and this improves the wear phenomenon.

Tailored Formulations of Geometric Constraints for Algebraic Analysis of Mechanism Kinematics

Algebraic analysis of the kinematics of large and complicated mechanisms is complicated by the fact that the computational complexity grows very quickly as a function of the number of variables. However, for mechanisms which contain only revolute and/or cylindrical joints one can always simplify the original constraint ideal by choosing the right prime component of the ideal of revolute or cylindrical joint. By making these choices one automatically discards components which are irrelevant to the problem and hence the resulting ideal is simpler than the original. In this way one can immediately analyze some systems whose analysis in the original form is not feasible. As an example we illustrate our results using the spherical 4–bar mechanism.

Dynamics and Trajectory Planning for Reconfigurable Space Multibody Robots

A free-floating space robot equipped with multiple reconfigurable manipulators is designed and investigated in this paper. Lockable passive cylindrical joints (PCJs) are utilized to make the manipulator have the ability of changing its length and twisted angle. Each cylindrical joint, connecting two adjacent rigid links, has no embedded actuators but a brake mechanism. Normally, the mechanism is locked during the operation. When in the reconfiguration stage, two manipulators grasp each other to form a closed loop. Then one PCJ is unlocked, whose relative rotation and translation can be changed by the active torques at other joints. This system is a typical space multibody system. The dynamics of the space robot with unlocked cylindrical joints and a closed structural loop is investigated. The equations of motion are derived through Maggi–Kane's method. The obtained mathematical model is free of multipliers, which makes it suitable for controller design. A trajectory planning algorithm capable of avoiding the configuration singularity of the manipulators is proposed. A slide mode controller embedded with an extended state observer (ESO) is designed for the trajectory tracking control. Numerical simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the trajectory planning and control strategy for the reconfiguration process.