Optimal design of a novel high speed and high precision 3-DOF manipulator

A novel 3-DOF high speed and high precision manipulator, which combines direct driven planar parallel mechanism and linear actuator, is introduced. Through adding some constraints, workspace with well kinematics performance can be generated, and the optimization of geometric parameter is carried out in terms of a new performance index composed of speed and dexterity. Design study then is carried out in the software ADAMS environment to analyze the approximate design sensitivity of the variable; that is, the effects of parameter of each beam cross sectional area and relative position of linear actuator on model performance. Several conclusions are then drawn on the appropriate way of dynamics optimization to get a lightweight and small deformation manipulator. Dynamics simulation of an improved planar parallel mechanism with different cross section and another unrefined one are compared. The stiffness of them is almost equal, but the mass of the improved one decreases 30 percent compared with the initial one. That means this way of optimization is efficient