Workspace Analysis of a Novel Six-Degrees-of-Freedom Parallel Manipulator With Coaxial Actuated Arms

Parallel manipulators possess several advantages compared to serial robots, including the possibilities for high acceleration and high accuracy positioning of the manipulated platform. However, the majority of all proposed parallel mechanisms suffer from the combined drawbacks of a small positional workspace in relation to the manipulator footprint and a limited range of rotations of the manipulated platform. This paper analyses a recently proposed six-degrees-of-freedom parallel mechanism that aims to address both these issues while maintaining the traditional advantages of a parallel mechanism. The investigated manipulator consists of six actuated coaxial upper arms that are allowed to rotate indefinitely around a central cylindrical base column and a manipulated platform where five of the six joint positions are collinear. The axis-symmetric arm system leads to an extensive positional workspace while the proposed link arrangement increases the range of achievable platform rotations. The manipulator workspace is analyzed in detail and two methods to further increase the rotational workspace are presented. It is shown that the proposed manipulator has the possibility of a nonsingular transition of assembly modes, which extends the usable workspace. Furthermore, it is demonstrated how an additional kinematic chain can be utilized to achieve infinite platform rotation around one platform axis. By introducing additional mobility in the manipulated platform, a redundantly actuated mechanism is avoided.