Multi-Criteria Workspace Optimization of Parallel Kinematic Machines

Abstract

Parallel kinematic machines or parallel robots have been a topic of research for many researchers in the field of robotics for the last two decades. The core idea is to develop systems that can perform a given task in as desirable a way as possible. The serial robots have been deployed in the industry for quite some time; but the ever increasing requirements on accuracy, controllability and capability to perform tasks in an efficient way; has somehow moved the researchers to find alternate systems. The best alternative to the serial robots so far is in the form of parallel robots. These robots have none of the drawbacks associated with the serial robots hence they become the natural choice to replace their serial counterparts. The parallel robots have their own drawbacks e.g. the workspace is small, irregular shaped and has a lot of singularities. For the industry to use these systems to their full potential there is an immense need of research that could somehow enhance the performance of parallel machines. This project intends to develop a methodology to find the optimum design parameters to get the best results on multiple objectives, hence the title of the project “Multi-Criteria Workspace Optimization of Parallel Kinematic Machines”. These objectives include the workspace volume (size of the workspace) and some other factors that control the quality of the workspace.