Cable-driven parallel manipulator (CDPM) is a good solution to achieving large workspace. However, unavoidable vibrations of long cables can dramatically degrade the positioning performance in large workspace applications. Most work so far on cable-driven parallel manipulators (CDPMs) simply neglected the dynamics of the cables themselves. In this paper dynamic modeling of large CDPMs is addressed using a variable domain finite element method (FEM). A cable element with variable length is derived using the absolute nodal coordinate formulation to facilitate motion analysis of CDPMs. The effects of cable length variation and the resulting mass variation are also considered. Based on this element dynamics model of CDPMs can be readily obtained using the standard assembling operation in the FEM. Numerical results showed that the effect of the derivatives of cable length variation and that of the mass variation are trivial.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.