Development of a Pipe Bender Using a Parallel Mechanism with 3-RPSR Structure with Six Degrees of Freedom

The present paper proposed the 3-RPSR mechanism with six dof as the movable-die drive mechanism, which can achieve a wide range of output orientation angles, for bending pipes into threedimensional complex shapes. Kinematic and static analyses of this mechanism were discussed. Configuration of a prototype pipe bender composed of this mechanism and a pipe feeder was shown. Results of experiments using this prototype bender were shown and the shapes and surface quality of the bent pipes were investigated.