Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
5018726 | Mechanism and Machine Theory | 2018 | 10 Pages |
Abstract
Finger clamp units (FCU) are widely used in industries to clamp flat-shape materials such as steel plates by using a toggle-linkage mechanism. Generally, in toggle-linkage mechanisms, a near singular configuration is used to obtain a high clamping force. Because the high force characteristics in a singular configuration change dramatically for a near singular workspace, the thickness of the plate is limited for a specific toggle-linkage mechanism. In this study, the design of a FCU is optimized such that a single FCU is used for plates with different thicknesses. First, various linkage alternatives are investigated to determine the mechanism that is more useful for a toggle linkage. Second, the design is optimized to ensure a high clamping force in a pre-defined range of plate thickness. Verification experiments are performed based on the simulation results. We expect that the proposed toggle-linkage mechanism can be used for various clamping applications.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Engineering
Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
Authors
Sumin Park, Jangho Bae, Youngjae Jeon, Kyungsung Chu, Jeongae Bak, TaeWon Seo, Jongwon Kim,