Structural synthesis of 3DOF articulated manipulators based on kinematic evaluation

In this study, serial and parallelogram linkage structures are evaluated and compared, on the basis of kinematic performance measures such as workspace and manipulability. Tradeoff relationships between workspace manipulability are established for both the structures, using the configuration of the arm lengths as a design variable. The structures are also analyzed on the basis of their manipulation ability in specific regions of their workspace, providing additional design criteria during the selection of the kinematic structure in the synthesis of industrial articulated robots.