Dimensional synthesis of six-bar linkages with incomplete data set

Abstract

The paper deals with the synthesis problem of six-bar linkage for motion guidance with a finite set of prescribed poses. Compared with four-bar linkage which admits exact solutions for five separated poses, the six-bar linkages in general admit infinitive many solutions for the same number of poses, due to the fact that the motion-guidance in the case of six-bar linkage provides incomplete data for linkage synthesis. In this paper, the problem of six-bar linkage synthesis is revisited addressing the problem with incomplete data and its implication in design flexibility. A new method is developed to incorporate with incomplete set of data. A design example is included to demonstrate the application of the method.