Application of the Rigid Finite Element Method to the Simulation of Cable-Driven Parallel Robots

Kinematics and dynamics of cable-driven parallel robots are affected by the cables used as force and motion transmitting elements. Flexural rigidity of these cables is of major interest to better understand dynamics of these systems and to improve their accuracy. The approach for modeling spatial cable dynamics, as presented in this paper, is based on the modified rigid-finite element method using rigid bodies and spring-damper elements. With this, a simulation of a planar 3 degrees of freedom cable-driven parallel robot is constructed as a multi-body dynamics model. Under consideration of holonomic constraints and Baumgarte stabilization, a simulation framework for the simulation of cable-driven parallel robots including dynamics of the cables is developed and presented.