Prototype model of tripod parallel mechanism with planar actuators for flight simulator

In this paper a planar type of tripod parallel mechanism for a new flight simulator has been proposed and designed. The parallel mechanism has three legs translating on ground. A scale model of the tripod parallel mechanism with planar actuators is designed and fabricated. The planar actuator is performed with two-axis Sawyer type of linear motor floating on ground by aerostatic bearing. Distributed control for the three planar actuators with six-degree-of-freedom is carried out by one-chip microcomputer. The analytical and experimental results show that the planar type of tripod parallel mechanism has larger motion space and tilt angle than the conventional Stewart-Gough platform type of parallel mechanism.