The design of cable-driven manipulators is complicated by the unidirectional nature of the cables, which results in extra actuators and limited workspaces. Furthermore, the particular arrangement of the cables and the geometry of the robot pose have a significant effect on the cable tension required to effect a desired joint torque. For a sufficiently complex robot, the identification of a satisfactory cable architecture can be difficult and can result in multiply redundant actuators and performance limitations based on workspace size and cable tensions. This work leverages previous research into the workspace analysis of cable systems combined with stochastic optimization to develop a generalized methodology for designing optimized cable routings for a given robot and desired task. A cable-driven robot leg performing a walking-gait motion is used as a motivating example to illustrate the methodology application. The components of the methodology are described, and the process is applied to the example problem. An optimal cable routing is identified, which provides the necessary controllable workspace to perform the desired task and enables the robot to perform that task with minimal cable tensions. A robot leg is constructed according to this routing and used to validate the theoretical model and to demonstrate the effectiveness of the resulting cable architecture.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
August 2016
Research-Article
Optimal Design of Cable-Driven Manipulators Using Particle Swarm Optimization
Joshua T. Bryson,
Joshua T. Bryson
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
University of Delaware,
Newark, DE 19716
e-mail: jtbryson@udel.edu
University of Delaware,
Newark, DE 19716
e-mail: jtbryson@udel.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
Xin Jin,
Xin Jin
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: x.jin@columbia.edu
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: x.jin@columbia.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
Sunil K. Agrawal
Sunil K. Agrawal
Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: sunil.agrawal@columbia.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: sunil.agrawal@columbia.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
Joshua T. Bryson
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
University of Delaware,
Newark, DE 19716
e-mail: jtbryson@udel.edu
University of Delaware,
Newark, DE 19716
e-mail: jtbryson@udel.edu
Xin Jin
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: x.jin@columbia.edu
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: x.jin@columbia.edu
Sunil K. Agrawal
Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: sunil.agrawal@columbia.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Columbia University,
New York, NY 10027
e-mail: sunil.agrawal@columbia.edu
Manuscript received July 11, 2015; final manuscript received November 4, 2015; published online March 7, 2016. Assoc. Editor: Satyandra K. Gupta.
J. Mechanisms Robotics. Aug 2016, 8(4): 041003 (8 pages)
Published Online: March 7, 2016
Article history
Received:
July 11, 2015
Revised:
November 4, 2015
Citation
Bryson, J. T., Jin, X., and Agrawal, S. K. (March 7, 2016). "Optimal Design of Cable-Driven Manipulators Using Particle Swarm Optimization." ASME. J. Mechanisms Robotics. August 2016; 8(4): 041003. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4032103
Download citation file:
Get Email Alerts
Design and Development of Scissorbot: A Novel Mid-flight-Span-Reducing Quadcopter
J. Mechanisms Robotics
A Combined Strategy for Path Planning of Tensegrity Manipulators Considering Structural Stability
J. Mechanisms Robotics (May 2025)
Safety in Wearable Robotic Exoskeletons: Design, Control, and Testing Guidelines
J. Mechanisms Robotics (May 2025)
The Interior Contact-Aided Rolling Element
J. Mechanisms Robotics (April 2025)
Related Articles
Configuration Robustness Analysis of the Optimal Design of Cable-Driven Manipulators
J. Mechanisms Robotics (December,2016)
Orientation Workspace and Stiffness Optimization of Cable-Driven Parallel Manipulators With Base Mobility
J. Mechanisms Robotics (June,2017)
Developing a Kinematically Similar Master Device for Extensible Continuum Robot Manipulators
J. Mechanisms Robotics (April,2018)
An Approach for Identifying Dynamic Parameters in Robotic Systems With Inconsistent Joint Measurements
J. Dyn. Sys., Meas., Control (January,2025)
Related Proceedings Papers
Related Chapters
A New Hybrid Algorithm for Optimization Using Particle Swarm Optimization and Great Deluge Algorithm
International Conference on Advanced Computer Theory and Engineering, 4th (ICACTE 2011)
A Novel Particle Swarm Optimizer with Kriging Models
Intelligent Engineering Systems Through Artificial Neural Networks, Volume 17
Research on Autobody Panels Developmental Technology Based on Reverse Engineering
International Conference on Measurement and Control Engineering 2nd (ICMCE 2011)