A cable-driven parallel mechanism for the interaction with hemispherical surfaces

Abstract

In this paper, a device based upon a specific cable-driven parallel mechanism to interact with hemispherical surfaces is proposed and investigated. This device could be of use in, for example, the automated cleaning of glass domes. Because the cables move on the hemispherical surface, they are curved. A method is developed to calculate the inverse kinematics and the workspace of this mechanism. This method and device are applied to and evaluated for an example of a large glass dome, showing its potential for this purpose. © Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013.