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Mechanism and Actuation

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Springer Handbook of Robotics

Part of the book series: Springer Handbooks ((SHB))

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the principles that guide the design and construction of robotic systems. The kinematics equations and Jacobian of the robot characterize its range of motion and mechanical advantage, and guide the selection of its size and joint arrangement. The tasks a robot is to perform and the associated precision of its movement determine detailed features such as mechanical structure, transmission, and actuator selection. Here we discuss in detail both the mathematical tools and practical considerations that guide the design of mechanisms and actuation for a robot system.

The following sections (Sect. 4.1) discuss characteristics of the mechanisms and actuation that affect the performance of a robot. Sections 4.2–4.6 discuss the basic features of a robot manipulator and their relationship to the mathematical model that is used to characterize its performance. Sections 4.7 and 4.8 focus on the details of the structure and actuation of the robot and how they combine to yield various types of robots. The final Sect. 4.9 relates these design features to various performance metrics.

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Abbreviations

AC:

alternating current

ASV:

adaptive suspension vehicle

DC:

direct current

DOF:

degree of freedom

EAP:

electroactive polymer

emf:

electromotive force

MEMS:

microelectromechanical system

MTBF:

mean time between failures

NASA:

National Aeronautics and Space Agency

NEO:

neodymium

PM:

permanent magnet

RV:

rotary vector

SEA:

series elastic actuator

SMA:

shape memory alloy

VR:

variable reluctance

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 440 Escondido Mall, CA 94305-3030, Stanford, USA

    Victor Scheinman

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Irvine, 5200 Engineering Hall, CA 92697-3975, Irvine, USA

    J. Michael McCarthy

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea University, Anam-ro 145, Seongbuk-gu, 136-713, Seoul, Korea

    Jae-Bok Song

Authors
  1. Victor Scheinman
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  2. J. Michael McCarthy
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  3. Jae-Bok Song
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Victor Scheinman .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, Via Claudio 21, 80125, Naples, Italy

    Bruno Siciliano

  2. Department of Computer Sciences, Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Stanford University, 450 Serra Mall, CA 94305, Stanford, USA

    Oussama Khatib

Video-References

Video-References

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A parallel robot available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/640

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Three-fingered robot hand available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/642

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Robotics milking system available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/643

:

SCARA robots available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/644

:

Big Dog –Applications of hydraulic actuators available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/645

:

Raytheon Sarcos exoskeleton available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/646

:

PI piezo hexapod available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/648

:

Harmonic drive available from http://handbookofrobotics.org/view-chapter/04/videodetails/649

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Scheinman, V., McCarthy, J.M., Song, JB. (2016). Mechanism and Actuation. In: Siciliano, B., Khatib, O. (eds) Springer Handbook of Robotics. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32552-1_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32552-1_4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-32550-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-32552-1

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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