Computer-aided-symbolic dynamic modeling for Stewart-platform manipulator

E-ISSN： 1469-8668|27|3|331-341

ISSN： 0263-5747

Source： Robotica, Vol.27, Iss.3, 2009-05, pp. : 331-341

Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.

Previous Menu Next

Abstract

The Stewart platform manipulator is a fully kinematic linkage system that has major mechanical differences from typical serial link robots. It is a six-axis parallel robot manipulator with a high force-to-weight ratio and good positioning accuracy that exceeds that of a conventional serial link robot arm. This study examines the dynamic equations and control methodology for a Stewart platform. Because manual symbolic expansion of Stewart platform robot dynamic equations is tedious, time-consuming, and prone to errors, an automated derivation process is highly desired. The main goal of this work is to present an efficient procedure for computer generation of dynamic equations for a Stewart platform manipulator. As MATLAB has a powerful signal processing toolbox along with symbolic processing capabilities and is widely used as a common technical computing environment in many universities and research laboratories, the objective of this study was to develop a MATLAB-based approach for symbolic computation for a parallel linked robot. Additionally, a computed-torque control methodology is utilized for such a structure. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control methodology.