To accommodate frequent changes in product design and to be able to process a family of products in a timely and cost-effective manner, the next generation of machine tools should be reconfigurable. Reconfigurability enables reduction not only in machine design lead time but more significantly a reduction in machine set-up and ramp-up time. The essential characteristics of Reconfigurable Machine Tools (RMTs) include modularity, convertibility, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. This paper presents a mathematical representation scheme using screw theory that lays the foundation for systematic design of reconfigurable machine tools. The motion characteristics of a set of desired machining tasks as well as stored library of machine modules are captured in a common representation scheme. A simple design example to illustrate the application of this methodology for systematic selection and synthesis of reconfigurable machine tools is presented.
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e-mail: ymmoon@engin.umich.edu
e-mail: kota@engin.umich.edu
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March 2002
Technical Papers
Generalized Kinematic Modeling of Reconfigurable Machine Tools
Yong-Mo Moon, Research Fellow, ASME Assoc. Mem.,
e-mail: ymmoon@engin.umich.edu
Yong-Mo Moon, Research Fellow, ASME Assoc. Mem.
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48019
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Sridhar Kota, Associate Professor, ASME Mem.
e-mail: kota@engin.umich.edu
Sridhar Kota, Associate Professor, ASME Mem.
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48019
Search for other works by this author on:
Yong-Mo Moon, Research Fellow, ASME Assoc. Mem.
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48019
e-mail: ymmoon@engin.umich.edu
Sridhar Kota, Associate Professor, ASME Mem.
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48019
e-mail: kota@engin.umich.edu
Contributed by the Mechanisms Committee for publication in the JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL DESIGN. Manuscript received June 1998. Associate Editor: C. W. Wampler II
J. Mech. Des. Mar 2002, 124(1): 47-51 (5 pages)
Published Online: June 1, 1998
Article history
Received:
June 1, 1998
Citation
Moon, Y., and Kota, S. (June 1, 1998). "Generalized Kinematic Modeling of Reconfigurable Machine Tools ." ASME. J. Mech. Des. March 2002; 124(1): 47–51. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.1424892
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