Straight-line mechanism
bars of identical colour are of equal length
In the late seventeenth century, before the development of the planer and the milling machine, it was extremely difficult to machine straight, flat surfaces. For this reason, good prismatic pairs without backlash were not easy to make. During that era, much thought was given to the problem of attaining a straight-line motion as a part of the coupler curve of a linkage having only revolute connection. Probably the best-known result of this search is the straight line mechanism development by Watt for guiding the piston of early steam engines. Although it does not generate an exact straight line, a good approximation is achieved over a considerable distance of travel.
Nearly straight line linkages
- Watt's linkage (1784)
- Chebyshev linkage
- Chebyshev's Lambda Mechanism (1878) (Can trade off straightness and near constant velocity)
- Hoeckens linkage (1926)
- Roberts Mechanism
Perfect straight line linkages
Eventually, several linkages were discovered that produced perfect linear output;
- Tusi couple (1247) hypocycloid Straight-line Mechanism
- Scott Russell linkage
- Sarrus linkage (1853)
- Peaucellier–Lipkin linkage (1864)
- Hart's inversor/Hart's A-frame (1874)
- Quadruplanar-Inversor (1875)
See also
Sources
- Theory of Machines and Mechanisms, Joseph Edward Shigley
External links
- Cornell university - Straight-line mechanism models
- Cornell university - "How to Draw a Straight Line" by A.B. Kempe
- Cornell university - "How to Draw a Straight Line" - tutorial by Daina Taimina
- Simulations using the Molecular Workbench software
- bham.ac.uk - Hart's A-frame (draggable animation) 6-bar linkage
 | This engineering-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |