Mechanics of compliant serial manipulator composed of dual-triangle segments

TL;DR

This paper investigates the mechanics of a novel compliant serial manipulator with dual-triangle elastic segments, analyzing stability, equilibrium configurations, and buckling phenomena through analytical, numerical, and simulation methods.

Contribution

It introduces a new type of dual-triangle elastic segments and provides comprehensive analysis of their stability and stiffness characteristics using both theoretical and numerical approaches.

Findings

Buckling or quasi-buckling can occur under load depending on initial configuration.

Stiffness matrices were computed using the Virtual Joint Method.

Simulation results confirm theoretical predictions.

Abstract

The paper focuses on the mechanics of a compliant serial manipulator composed of new type of dual-triangle elastic segments. Both the analytical and numerical methods were used to find the manipulator stable and unstable equilibrium configurations, as well as to predict corresponding manipulator shapes. The stiffness analysis was carried on for both loaded and unloaded modes, the stiffness matrices were computed using the Virtual Joint Method (VJM). The results demonstrate that either buckling or quasi-buckling phenomenon may occur under the loading, if the manipulator corresponding initial configuration is straight or non-straight one. Relevant simulation results are presented that confirm the theoretical study.