Design-Simulation-Optimization Package for a Generic 6-DOF Manipulator with a Spherical Wrist

Abstract

Robot manipulators are built to meet certain predetermined performance requirements. The question of whether the robot will have the desired functionality (e.g. dexterity, accuracy, reliability, speed, etc.) needs to be answered before the robot is actually built. We have developed a software package that can greatly ease the design of a generic 6-DOF manipulator with a spherical wrist. Our package will accept as input the configuration of a generic robot in D-H parameter form and the robot dynamics parameters and produce a variety of closed form solutions that are essential to the robot designer. The package can also be used as a simulation tool that can tell the designer whether the manipulator meets the desired functionality. It will also optimize several control and structure parameters for the generic manipulator based on simulated task descriptions.