Computer-aided design of mechanical linkages

An interactive computer-aided design system for kinematic analysis of mechanical linkages in three-dimensional space is described. The design system affords the designer a wide range of capabilities including the conceptual definition of a linkage by its linkage bodies, constraints, and loops, the visualization of a linkage by means of wire frame representations of linkage components, and the performance of position analyses of a linkage's motions. The system makes use of computer graphics in an inter-active environment to provide the output and visual displays which contribute to the comprehension and analyzation of a linkage. The system has been adapted to assist in the design of mechanical linkages with constraints and configurations particularly suitable for analysis under the present system's capabilities. This has proven to be a significant technological advancement over previous methods of designing a linkage in a production environment in which many manual drafting layouts were required to check out the operation and proper functioning of a given design.