Stiffness analysis and optimization of an asymmetric 3T1R parallel mechanism

In this paper, an asymmetric 3T1R parallel mechanism is proposed that has higher stiffness in specific directions. The stiffness model is established by using virtual spring theory, and the Cartesian stiffness matrix is obtained. The stiffness performance evaluation indices are deduced by the dimensionless parameterization method. Under the condition of satisfying the high-speed performance and dexterity, the optimal size parameters of the mechanism are got by using the DE (differential evolution) algorithm with stiffness performance as the index. By comparing the stiffness performance atlases before and after the optimization, it is showed that the stiffness performance has been improved and the reachable workspace has been increased. The results verify the feasibility of the proposed performance indices and optimization algorithm.