CLASSIFICATION OF 5R CLOSED KINEMATIC CHAINS WITH SELF MOBILITY

In this paper we shall classify and explicitly describe all 5-parametr ic closed kinematic chains consisting of rotational pairs which have o ne degree of freedom. We shall prove that beside the so-called Goldber g linkages we obtain another class of 5R closed kinematic chains with one degree of freedom. Similarly as in the case of Goldberg linkages t he new class is also closely connected with the Bennett's mechanism, b ut linkages have non-zero offsets. Because of the complexity of the pr oblem, all computations were performed on a work station using Mathema tica. For one example from the new class of movable 5R closed kinemati c chains we give explicit formulas for joint angles that allow verific ation of the movability of the closed kinematic chain on a computer. ( C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd.