Harmonic drive transmissions: the effects of their elasticity, clearance and irregularity on the dynamic behaviour of an actual SCARA robot

Abstract

SUMMARY This paper deals with the study of the effects of Harmonic Drives characteristics on the dynamic behaviour of industrial robots. These components are firstly analyzed on the basis of the technical literature and, as a result, a mechanical model with concentrated parameters is obtained. Finally, the influence of these parameters on the dynamic behaviour of an actual SCARA robot in our department is investigated by means of experimental tests and by a computer simulation program purposely written.