Systematic modeling of a chain of N-flexible link manipulators connected by revolute-prismatic joints using recursive Gibbs-Appell formulation (Q2511597)

The authors discuss the rather complex title problem using a recursive Gibbs-Appell formulation. The manipulator links are represented as Euler-Bernoulli beams. The effect of gravity as well as longitudinal, transverse, and torsional vibrations are considered. What complicates the analysis is the inclusion of both prismatic as well as flexible joints. The end result is a systematic algorithm for developing the governing equations of motion for very general N-link manipulator systems. Considering the subject matter, the paper is somewhat detailed. Nevertheless, it provides a basis for engineers and designers needing to develop motion equations for large flexible multibody systems. The paper is then likely to be of interest and use to both theoreticians and designers.