Overview of Rubik’s Cube and Reflections on Its Application in Mechanism

Rubik’s Cube is a widely popular mechanical puzzle that has attracted attention around the world because of its unique characteristics. As a classic brain-training toy well known to the public, Rubik’s Cube was used for scientific research and technology development by many scholars. This paper provides a basic understanding of the Rubik’s Cube and shows its mechanical art from the aspects of origin and development, characteristics, research status and especially its mechanical engineering design, as well as making a vision for the application in mechanism. First, the invention and origin of Rubik’s Cube are presented, and then the special characteristics of the cube itself are analyzed. After that, the present researches of Rubik’s Cube are reviewed in various disciplines at home and abroad, including the researches of Rubik’s Cube scientific metaphors, reduction algorithms, characteristic applications, and mechanism issues. Finally, the applications and prospects of Rubik’s Cube in the field of mechanism are discussed.