Transputer arrays for the on‐line computation of robot jacobians

摘要

Abstract On‐line computation of forward and inverse Jacobian matrices is essential in robot manipulator controllers, where high‐speed robot motion is required. The complexity of Jacobian calculation is such that the computational burden is large, and parallel processing is necessary if on‐line computation is to be achieved. Various algorithms and parallel‐processing networks suitable for this are considered. All algorithms have been implemented on transputer networks and computation times measured. The paper emphasises the importance of including communication overheads in comparisons of the computational efficiency of alternative algorithms and processor networks. Theoretical processing times based on computer cycle times and arithmetic operation counts are shown to be a false basis for comparison. Whilst considering the specific case of computation of Jacobian matrices for a robot manipulator, the paper provides a useful example of the considerations and constraints involved in distributing any algorithm across a multi‐processor network.