Abstract

The design of a novel scanning apparatus used for digitizing dental impression molds is presented. The apparatus consists of a four-degree-of-freedom hybrid spherical linkage capable of moving the dental mold relative to a laser scanner along a curved path in the specified orientations. Since closed form inverse kinematics solutions are not available for the multiple degree-of-freedom spatial mechanism in question, symbolic and numerical computation techniques are used extensively for kinematics analysis, dimension design, and optimization. In addition, mechanical design and simulation software (Pro/Engineer & Pro/Mechanica), as well as the rapid prototyping machines are used to reduce the development cost and cycle time.

Volume Subject Area:
26th Biennial Mechanisms and Robotics Conference
Keywords:
spherical linkage, kinematics, manipulator, path planning, scanning, laser sensor
Topics:
Design, Kinematics, Lasers, Linkages, Computation, Computer software, Cycles, Degrees of freedom, Design engineering, Dimensions, Engineers, Machinery, Manipulators, Optimization, Path planning, Rapid prototyping, Sensors, Simulation
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