Index based optimal anatomy of a metamorphic manipulator for a given task

This paper introduces an approach for the determination of the best anatomy of a metamorphic manipulator for a given task at a given location. The location of the task is determined by maximizing the performance of a current industrial fixed anatomy robot. Two types of tasks are considered: a point to point task and a path following task, where in the first case the approximated minimum of the manipulability index is formed along the task points and in the second case the approximated minimum of the manipulator velocity ratio is formed along the line segments. These indexes are maximized in order to determine the best anatomy for the task. The proposed approach is tested and the results show that the determined best anatomy for each type of task acquired higher performance than the respective one achieved by the fixed anatomy manipulator.

► Determination of optimal location of task(s) in fixed anatomy manipulator's workspace.
► Determination of optimal anatomy of a metamorphic manipulator for given task(s) optimally placed in a fixed anatomy manipulator's workspace.
► Evaluation of the performance of the metamorphic manipulator for the given task(s) as anatomy is altered.
► Comparison of performance of metamorphic vs. fixed anatomy robots for the same task(s).