INTRODUCTION TO

MECHANISMS & KINEMATICS

CHAPTER 01
Machines & Mechanisms
David Myszka

Muhammad Usman
Lecturer
MED – The University of Lahore
 PURPOSE OF STUDY
❖ Kinematic analysis is of prime importance in design of mechanisms and
machines

❖ Understanding and analyzing the motion of machinery

❖ Determining the effect of the forces acting in the machine

❖ Synthesis of mechanisms in order to accomplish desired motions

❖ Analysis of mechanisms in order to determine their rigid-body dynamic

behavior
 CAR’S WINDSHIELD WIPERS EXAMPLE
❖ Suppose you are a member of the design team responsible for windshield wiper
system
❖ The design task is determining appropriate movements of the wipers
❖ Decide weather tandem or opposed wipe pattern better fits the vehicle
❖ After establishing desired movement an assembly of components must be
configured
 KINEMATICS & KINETICS
❖ Kinematics is the branch of mechanics concerned with the motion of objects
without reference to the forces which cause the motion or being caused by it;
e.g. analysis of typewriter, pendulum, firing cannon ball & shooting basket ball.
Kinematic analysis involves determination of position/displacement,
linear/angular velocity and acceleration of a mechanism

❖ Kinetics is the branch of classical mechanics that is concerned with the

relationship between motion and its causes, specifically, forces and torques
which cause the motion or being caused by it; e.g. analysis of airplane, ball
thrown upwards, friction, torque & elastic collisions between molecules

❖ The division between kinematics and kinetics is quite arbitrary and is done largely
for convenience
 MECHANISMS AND MACHINES
❖ Mechanism is a combination of various links which are capable of having
relative motion with respect to one another. A mechanism typically develops
very low forces and transmits little power

❖ A machine typically contains mechanisms which are designed to provide

significant forces and transmit significant power

❖ They differ in degree rather than in kind. If the forces or energy levels within the
device are significant, it is considered a machine; if not, it is considered a
mechanism
 Mechanism Machine
▶ Mechanism transmits and modifies ▶ Machine changes the mechanical work
the motion

▶ Machine will have many mechanisms for

▶ A mechanism is an outline of the transmitting the mechanical work or
machine to produce define motion power
between various links or joints

▶ In a machine, cross-section and

▶ Where kinematic chain is analyzed proportions are to be considered to give
as a mechanism, no special stiffness, strength, and clearance to the
consideration need to be given to paths of the machine
the formed cross-section of the links

▶ Examples of the machine are slotting,

▶ Examples of mechanisms are clocks, lathe, shaper in the workshop, (Shaper
typewriter, steering mechanism in a receives mechanical power which is
car, etc. suitably converted to do the work of
cutting the metal), etc.
 MECHANISM TERMINOLOGY

❖ A linkage is a mechanism where rigid parts are connected together to form a

chain

❖ Frame a part that exhibits no motion and serves as the frame of reference for the
motion of all other parts

❖ Links are the individual parts of the mechanism. They are considered rigid bodies
and are connected with other links to transmit motion and forces

❖ Elastic parts, such as springs, are not rigid and, therefore, are not considered
links. They have no effect on the kinematics of a mechanism and are usually
ignored
 MECHANISM TERMINOLOGY

❖ A joint is a movable connection between links and allows relative motion

between the links.

❖ There are two primary joints, also called full joints, are the revolute and sliding
joints.

❖ The revolute joint is also called a pin or hinge joint. It allows pure rotation
between the two links that it connects.

❖ The sliding joint is also called a piston or prismatic joint. It allows linear sliding
between the links that it connects.
 MECHANISM TERMINOLOGY

❖ The cam connection is called a higher-order joint, also called half joint

❖ It allows for both rotation and sliding between the two links that it connects

❖ A gear connection also allows rotation and sliding between two gears as their
teeth mesh
 TYPES OF KINEMATIC PAIRS

❖ A lower pair is an ideal joint that constrains contact between a surface in the
moving body to a corresponding surface in the fixed body. A lower pair is one in
which there occurs a surface or area contact between two members, e.g. nut
and screw, universal joint used to connect two propeller shafts

❖ A higher pair is a constraint that requires a curve or surface in the moving body
to maintain contact with a curve or surface in the fixed body. For example, the
contact between a cam and its follower is a higher pair called a cam joint.
Similarly, the contact between the involute curves that form the meshing teeth of
two gears are cam joints, as is a wheel rolling on a surface. It has a point or line
contact
 MECHANISM TERMINOLOGY
❖ A simple link is a rigid body that contains only two joints, which connect it to
other links

❖ A crank is a simple link that is able to complete a full rotation about a fixed
center

❖ A rocker is a simple link that oscillates through an angle, reversing its direction at
certain intervals

❖ A complex link is a rigid body that contains more than two joints

❖ A rocker arm is a complex link, containing three joints, that is pivoted near its
center
 MECHANISM TERMINOLOGY
❖ A point of interest is a point on a link where the motion is of special interest e.g.
the end of the windshield wiper

❖ An actuator is the component that drives the mechanism. Common actuators

include motors (electric and hydraulic), engines, cylinders (hydraulic and
pneumatic), ball-screw motors, and solenoids

❖ Each link in a closed-loop kinematic chain is connected to two or more other

links

❖ An open-loop chain will have at least one link that is connected to only one
other link
 KINEMATIC DIAGRAMS

❖  A kinematic diagram illustrates the connectivity of links and joints of

a mechanism or machine rather than the dimensions or shape of the parts.
Often links are presented as geometric objects, such as lines, triangles or squares,
that support schematic versions of the joints of the mechanism or machine

❖ For convenient reference, the links are numbered, starting with the frame as link
number 1

❖ To avoid confusion, the joints should be lettered

 STEPS OF MAKING KINEMATIC DIAGRAM
❖ Identify the Frame

❖ Identify All Other Links

❖ Identify the Joints

❖ Identify Any Points of Interest

❖ Draw the Kinematic Diagram

 KINEMATIC INVERSIONS
❖ Absolute motion is measured with respect to a stationary frame

❖ Relative motion is measured for one point or link with respect to another link

❖ When different links are chosen as a frame, the relative motion of the links is not
altered, but the absolute motion can be drastically different

❖ For machines without a stationary link, relative motion is often the desired result

❖ Utilizing alternate links to serve as the fixed link is termed kinematic inversion
 EXCEPTIONS TO THE GRUEBLER’S EQUATION

❖ The Gruebler’s equation does not account for link geometry, in rare instances it
can lead to misleading results

❖ For example using Gruebler’s equation, this linkage has zero degrees of freedom.
Of course, this suggests that the mechanism is locked

❖ However, if all pivoted links were the same size, and the distance between the
joints on the frame and coupler were identical, this mechanism would be
capable of motion, with one degree of freedom

❖ The center link is redundant, and because it is identical in length to the other two
links attached to the frame, it does not alter the action of the linkage
 IDLE DEGREES OF FREEDOM
❖ In some mechanisms, links exhibit motion which does not influence the input and
output relationship of the mechanism; called idle DOF

❖ Here again Gruebler’s equation gives misleading results

❖ An example is a cam with a roller follower

❖ Gruebler’s equation specifies two degrees of freedom (4 links, 3 pins, 1

higher-order joint)
 THE FOUR-BAR MECHANISM
❖ It is a combination of four links, one being designated as the frame and
connected by four pin joints
❖ The pivoted link that is connected to the driver or power source is called the
input link

❖ The other pivoted link that is attached to the frame is designated the output link
or follower

❖ The coupler or connecting arm couples the motion of the input link to the output
link.
GRASHOF ’S CRITERION
 SLIDER-CRANK MECHANISM
❖ This mechanism also consists of a combination of four links, with one being
designated as the frame
❖ This mechanism, however, is connected by three pin joints and one sliding joint
❖ The pivoted link connected to the frame is called the crank. This link is not always
capable of completing a full revolution

❖ The link that translates is called the slider

❖ The coupler or connecting rod couples the motion of the crank to the slider