Chung-Cheng Institute of Technology, National Defense University, Tahsi, Taoyuan 335, Taiwan, ROC.
Nomenclaturebi
Vector from OI to B1
DVector from OI to OP
diVector from BI to PI
eiUnit vector of pIi
FtTangent force of vehicle
FnNormal force of vehicle
hMachine gun altitude
hPsAltitude of position Ps
hQsAltitude of position Qs
liLength of i link
lmaxMaximum length of leg
lmimMinimum length of leg
NpNormal vector of the moving platform
PpiVector from OP to PI
PsPosition vectors of muzzle
QsPosition vectors of butt base
qiVector from OI to PI
RPIRotation matrix
XBi,YBi,ZBiLeg frame i=1,2,3,4,5,6
XI, YI, ZIVehicle body frame
XP, YP, ZPMoving platform frame
θcAngle of ∠OCnR
θrFiring orientation angle
θpFiring angle
θtrTurn over angle
θPitch angle
φRoll angle
ΨYaw angles
It is an important work to design a weapon manipulator to satisfy the tactical needs for the military unmanned ground vehicles (MUGV). In this work, the RRR and 6-SPS mechanisms are proposed to design a weapon manipulator. The design factors for the weapon manipulator to satisfy the tactical needs are also discussed. According to the direct and inverse position analysis methods, the workspace analysis results show that these two mechanisms have better performances in satisfying the tactical needs than the RR and RPR mechanisms. The gradability performance is also discussed to verify that the proposed mechanisms can achieve a good performance. The analysis results can provide a reference resource for designers to design a weapon manipulator for MUGV.
Military unmanned ground vehicles, MUGV, weapon manipulator, gradability performance
