Preliminaries on Dynamic Modelling of Flexible Manipulators

Abstract

F1exible manipulators, due to their applicability in performing complex tasks, where their rigid link counterparts underperform, are gaining importance. However, the dynamics of flexible manipulators are not fully understood owing to their complex non-linear behaviour. In the current work, we propose a comprehensive 6 degrees-of-freedom finite element method based framework to model the dynamics of flexible manipulators. The predictions of the model, when applied for a simple cantilever beam, shows a good match with theoretical results. For further validation, a simple experimental setup was developed that emulates a flexible manipulator. The comparison results that experimental results closely match the predictions of the model, thus validating the modelling framework.