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Floating breakwaters (FBs) play an important role in protecting coastlines, marine structures, and ports due to their simple construction, convenient movement, cost-effectiveness, and environmental friendliness. However, the traditional box-type FBs are flawed due to their requiring large sizes for wave attenuation and their overly high level of wave reflection. In this paper, a novel partial T special-type FB with wave attenuation on the surface and flow blocking below the water has been presented. First, the User-Defined Function (UDF) feature in ANSYS Fluent was employed to compile the six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) motion model. A two-dimensional viscous numerical wave flume was developed using the velocity boundary wave-generation method and damping dissipation wave-absorption method, with fully coupled models of the FBs developed. A VOF multiphase flow model and a RANS turbulence model were employed to capture the free flow of gas–liquid two-phase flow. Then, the performance of wave attenuation of the new FB was compared with that of the traditional box-type FB of the same specifications. The simulation results showed that the transmission coefficient of the new FB is significantly lower than that of the box-type FB, and the dissipation coefficient is notably higher, demonstrating excellent performance of wave attenuation, particularly for long-period waves. As wave height increases, the novel FB benefits from its wave attenuation mechanism, with a lower reflection coefficient compared to the box-type FB. Finally, through parametric analysis, some design recommendations of the novel FB suitable for practical engineering applications in deep-sea aquaculture are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating breakwaters (FBs) play an important role in protecting coastlines, marine structures, and ports due to their simple construction, convenient movement, cost-effectiveness, and environmental friendliness. However, the traditional box-type FBs are flawed due to their requiring large sizes for wave attenuation and their overly high level of wave reflection. In this paper, a novel partial T special-type FB with wave attenuation on the surface and flow blocking below the water has been presented. First, the User-Defined Function (UDF) feature in ANSYS Fluent was employed to compile the six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) motion model. A two-dimensional viscous numerical wave flume was developed using the velocity boundary wave-generation method and damping dissipation wave-absorption method, with fully coupled models of the FBs developed. A VOF multiphase flow model and a RANS turbulence model were employed to capture the free flow of gas–liquid two-phase flow. Then, the performance of wave attenuation of the new FB was compared with that of the traditional box-type FB of the same specifications. The simulation results showed that the transmission coefficient of the new FB is significantly lower than that of the box-type FB, and the dissipation coefficient is notably higher, demonstrating excellent performance of wave attenuation, particularly for long-period waves. As wave height increases, the novel FB benefits from its wave attenuation mechanism, with a lower reflection coefficient compared to the box-type FB. Finally, through parametric analysis, some design recommendations of the novel FB suitable for practical engineering applications in deep-sea aquaculture are presented.

The 6-DOF Stewart parallel elevation platform serves as the platform for mounting the tea-picking robotic arm, significantly impacting the operational scope, velocity, and harvesting precision of the robotic arm. Utilizing the Stewart setup, a parallel elevation platform with automated lifting and leveling capabilities was devised, ensuring precise halts at designated elevations for seamless harvesting operations. The effectiveness of the platform parameter configuration and the reasonableness of the posture changes were verified. Firstly, the planting mode and growth characteristics of Yunnan large-leaf tea trees were analyzed to determine the preset path, posture changes, and mechanism stroke of the Stewart parallel lifting platform, thereby determining the basic design specifications of the platform. Secondly, a 3D model was established using SolidWorks, a robust adaptive PD control model was built using MATLAB for simulation, and dynamic calculations were carried out through data interaction in Simulink and ADAMS. Finally, the rationality of the lifting platform design requirements was determined based on simulation data, a 6-DOF Stewart parallel lifting platform was manufactured, and a motion control system was built for experimental verification according to the design specifications and simulation data. The results showed that the maximum deviation angle around the X, Y, and Z axes was 10°, the maximum lifting distance was 15 cm, the maximum load capacity was 60 kg, the platform response error was within ±0.1 mm, and the stable motion characteristics reached below the millimeter level, which can meet the requirements of automated operation of the auxiliary picking robotic arm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of an Archimedes spiral turbine (AST) for hydrokinetic applications was examined using a three-dimensional unsteady numerical model utilizing the six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) solver that is available in ANSYs Fluent software. From the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, the power coefficient (Cp) curve was estimated. This curve was compared with the curve of an Archimedes screw hydrokinetic turbine (ASHT) reported in the literature. The ASHT was found to be more efficient than the AST for electricity generation. The highest value of Cp for the AST was 0.337, which is a relatively high value in comparison with that of other types of hydrokinetic turbines. The results calculated from the CFD for the AST were compared with an experimental study reported for wind applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mathematical model of 6-DoF dynamics is used in different applications. In general, software-based solutions are utilized to implement the 6-DoF dynamic model. This paper introduces the FPGA-based implementation of the 6-DoF dynamics accelerator. The proposed hardware-based approach ensures the accuracy of the nonlinear model without compromising computational speed. The model-based approach and high-level synthesis have been employed in the design and implementation stages. Regarding design strategy, standard processor architecture, and resource-sharing methods have been applied to achieve FPGA resource efficiency. Seven datapath and finite state machines have been designed for seven different subsystems. The design resulted in hardware blocks that can execute all non-linear model equations 396 times in 1 ms using fixed/floating-point hybrid case and 434 times using pure fixed-point case. The model equations, which took an average of $\mathbf {0.4986}$ s to simulate in the Simulink environment, have been run on an FPGA in $\mathbf {7.1924}~\mu \text{s}$ . For seven design cases, numerical errors, resource utilization, and timing metrics are tabulated and presented to the reader.

In this work, the efficiency of two horizontal-axis hydrokinetic turbines, whose blades were designed with and without multi-element hydrofoil cross-sections, has been numerical and experimentally investigated for tip speed ratio (λ) values ranging between 2.5 and 9.0 to compare the experimental rotor performance with numerical results. The Eppler 420 hydrofoil was used for the design of the blades applying the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. The variation of the power coefficient curve of the turbines was analyzed by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and experimental tests through ANSYs Fluent software with six-degrees of freedom (6-DoF) user-defined function (UDF) method and an open hydraulic channel, respectively. Numerically, for the turbine with a multi-element hydrofoil and without a multi-element (traditional) hydrofoil, maximum power coefficients (CPmax) of 0.5050 and 0.419 (at a λ value equal to 7.129 and 6.739, respectively) were obtained. It is worth noting that a reasonable agreement between the numerical and the experimental results was achieved. In this regard, the blade with a multi-element hydrofoil has a positive influence on the hydrokinetic turbine performance; therefore, it can be used for power generation in river or marine systems.

This article investigates an adaptive tracking control problem for a six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) nonlinear quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a variable payload mass. The changing payload introduces time-varying parametric uncertainties into the dynamical model, rendering a static control strategy no longer effective. To handle this issue, two adaptive schemes are developed to maintain the uncertainties in the translational and rotational dynamics. Initially, a virtual proportional derivative (PD) is designed to stabilize the horizontal position; however, due to an unknown and time-varying mass, an adaptive controller is proposed to generate the total thrust of the UAV. Furthermore, an adaptive controller is designed for the rotational dynamics, to handle parametric uncertainties, such as inertia and external disturbance parameters. In both schemes, a standard adaptive scheme using the certainty equivalence principle is extended and designed. A stability analysis was conducted with rigorous analytical proofs to show the performance of our proposed controllers, and simulations were implemented to assess the performance against other existing methods. Tracking fitness and total control efforts were calculated and compared with closed-loop adaptive tracking control (CLATC) and adaptive sliding mode control (ASMC). The results indicated that the proposed design better maintained UAV stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The hydrofoil-flap arrangement has a positive effect on the blade performance. • Experimental tests were carried out for two different hydrokinetic turbine rotors. • CFD analyses were conducted through 6-DoF user-defined functions. • The CP value increases about 20.53% when a hydrofoil-flap arrangement is used. • The rotor optimization is crucial for reducing the energy transformation costs. In this work, the efficiency of two horizontal-axis hydrokinetic turbines, whose blades were designed with and without multi-element hydrofoil cross-sections, has been numerical and experimentally investigated for tip speed ratio (λ) values ranging between 2.5 and 9.0 to compare the experimental rotor performance with numerical results. The Eppler 420 hydrofoil was used for the design of the blades applying the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. The variation of the power coefficient curve of the turbines was analyzed by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and experimental tests through ANSYs Fluent software with six-degrees of freedom (6-DoF) user-defined function (UDF) method and an open hydraulic channel, respectively. Numerically, for the turbine with a multi-element hydrofoil and without a multi-element (traditional) hydrofoil, maximum power coefficients ( C Pmax ) of 0.5050 and 0.419 (at a λ value equal to 7.129 and 6.739, respectively) were obtained. It is worth noting that a reasonable agreement between the numerical and the experimental results was achieved. In this regard, the blade with a multi-element hydrofoil has a positive influence on the hydrokinetic turbine performance; therefore, it can be used for power generation in river or marine systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This manuscript presents an efficient algorithm for solving the inverse kinematics problem of a 6R robot manipulator to be deployed on embedded control hardware. The proposed method utilizes the geometric relationship between the end-effector and the base of the manipulator, resulting in a computationally efficient solution. The approach aims to minimize computational complexity and memory consumption while maintaining the accuracy and real-time performance demonstrated by simulations and verified by experimental results on an embedded system. Furthermore, the manipulator is analyzed in terms of singularities, limits, the workspace, and general solvability. Due to the simplicity of the algorithm, a platform-independent implementation is possible. As a result, the average calculation time is reduced by a factor of five to eight and the average error is decreased by a factor of fifty compared to a powerful analytical solver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pico hydro turbines are suitable for low head applications in power plants since their efficiency is more stable than other turbine types. In some situations, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has also been utilized as well as experimental studies for the performance prediction of water turbines at a pico scale. Also, CFD methods are getting much closer to real conditions in terms of steady-state with moving references and transient domains with rotor movements. For this purpose, electricity production related to the flow in a PHT was investigated numerically. This study presents six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) and moving reference frame (MRF) methods to predict the maximum conditions of a pico scale two-dimensional turbine by comparing the torque and angular velocities on the runner based on the turbine output power of 1 W determined by an experimental study. Besides, the effect of the torque, angular velocity, tip speed ratio, and turbine body profile was investigated comprehensively. In this regard, MRF and 6-DOF methods were performed to validate and compare the numerical model with the experimental results. Also, the results obtained from 6-DOF and MRF methods were compared to experimental study. It is concluded that PHT is generating 0.3 W power under 6.47 rad/s angular velocity with 6-DOF method, however; this value corresponds to 31.4 rad/s angular velocity against 1 W with the MRF method. Also, the maximum velocity of the turbine was 6.1 m/s according to the simulation result. It is accepted that the turbine maximum velocity inlet was 0.53 m/s based on the experimental study. As a conclusion, numerical results for the pico hydro turbine were reasonable taking the experimental study into account. It is also concluded that there is a tip speed ratio of 2.36 with the MRF method and 0.48 with the 6-DOF method between water tangential velocity and runner velocity for the turbine model.

Drag-reduction and fuel conservation,one of the significant benefits of active center of gravity(CG)control function,plays an important role in iterative and optimal design of function scheme. Based on its principle and scheme,the active CG control function of a certain aircraft is modeled,coupling with flight control system model,automatic flight control system model,fuel system model,aerodynamic model,engine model and aircraft 6-DOF(degree of freedom)model,with the consideration of effect of CG variations induced by fuel consumption. At the given altitude and Mach number,the benefits of active CG control function are estimated,through setting different target CG positions. The results show that it can bring considerable benefits to aircraft with the application of active CG control technology,especially,the more backward the target CG is,the more obvious benefits will be generated. The Mach number has an impact on the benefits of the function. Under the same conditions,the larger the Mach number is,the greater the return will be.

In order to control the 6-DOF apple picking manipulator to complete the picking task accurately and safely, a new trajectory planning method of 6-DOF apple picking manipulator is studied. Based on the mathematical model of the 6-DOF apple picking manipulator, the pose information and arm shape information of the forward and reverse motion of the manipulator are analyzed. On the basis of the obstacle avoidance method for the apple picking manipulator based on the improved artificial potential field, the obstacle model is constructed to obtain the obstacle distribution information. Through the two-way planning algorithm of the manipulator obstacle avoidance based on the improved artificial potential field method, the pose information and arm shape of the forward and reverse motion of the manipulator are controlled. On this basis, the trajectory planning control method of 6-DOF apple picking manipulator based on sliding mode PID control is used to control the manipulator to pick apples accurately and safely. After testing, the 6-DOF apple picking manipulator can realize the safe picking of apples according to the set picking position and speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the wide application of robots in life and production, robotic grasping is also experiencing continuous development. However, in practical application, some external environmental factors and the factors of the object itself have an impact on the accuracy of grasping detection. There are many classification methods of grasping detection. In this paper, the parallel gripper is used as the end of grasping to carry out research. Aiming at the angle problem of robot grasping, this paper summarizes some research status of grasping detection from 2D image to 3D space. According to their respective application, advantages, and disadvantages, this paper analyzes the development trend of the two methods. At the same time, several commonly used grasping datasets are introduced and compared.

This manuscript presents an efficient algorithm for solving the inverse kinematics problem of a 6R robot manipulator to be deployed on embedded control hardware. The proposed method utilizes the geometric relationship between the end-effector and the base of the manipulator, resulting in a computationally efficient solution. The approach aims to minimize computational complexity and memory consumption while maintaining the accuracy and real-time performance demonstrated by simulations and verified by experimental results on an embedded system. Furthermore, the manipulator is analyzed in terms of singularities, limits, the workspace, and general solvability. Due to the simplicity of the algorithm, a platform-independent implementation is possible. As a result, the average calculation time is reduced by a factor of five to eight and the average error is decreased by a factor of fifty compared to a powerful analytical solver.

Pico hydro turbines are suitable for low head applications in power plants since their efficiency is more stable than other turbine types. In some situations, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has also been utilized as well as experimental studies for the performance prediction of water turbines at a pico scale. Also, CFD methods are getting much closer to real conditions in terms of steady-state with moving references and transient domains with rotor movements. For this purpose, electricity production related to the flow in a PHT was investigated numerically. This study presents six degrees of freedom (6-DOF) and moving reference frame (MRF) methods to predict the maximum conditions of a pico scale two-dimensional turbine by comparing the torque and angular velocities on the runner based on the turbine output power of 1 W determined by an experimental study. Besides, the effect of the torque, angular velocity, tip speed ratio, and turbine body profile was investigated comprehensively. In this regard, MRF and 6-DOF methods were performed to validate and compare the numerical model with the experimental results. Also, the results obtained from 6-DOF and MRF methods were compared to experimental study. It is concluded that PHT is generating 0.3 W power under 6.47 rad/s angular velocity with 6-DOF method, however; this value corresponds to 31.4 rad/s angular velocity against 1 W with the MRF method. Also, the maximum velocity of the turbine was 6.1 m/s according to the simulation result. It is accepted that the turbine maximum velocity inlet was 0.53 m/s based on the experimental study. As a conclusion, numerical results for the pico hydro turbine were reasonable taking the experimental study into account. It is also concluded that there is a tip speed ratio of 2.36 with the MRF method and 0.48 with the 6-DOF method between water tangential velocity and runner velocity for the turbine model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating the 6-DoF (Degree of Freedom) object pose from a single RGB image is one of the challenging tasks in the field of computer vision. Before the pose which is defined as the translation and rotation parameters can be derived by the traditional PnP algorithm, 2D image projections of a set of 3D object keypoints must be accurately detected. In this paper, we present techniques for defining 3D object surface keypoints and predicting their corresponding 2D counterparts via deep-learning network architectures. The main technique to designate 3D object keypoints is to employ quadratic fitting scheme for calculating the principal surface curvatures as the weights and then select from all surface points the ones mostly distributive with larger curvatures to describe the object shape as possible. However, the 2D projected keypoints are not directly regressed from the network, but encoded as the unit vector fields pointing to them, so that the voting scheme to recover back those 2D keypoints can be performed. Moreover, an effective loss function with the regularization term is adopted in training ResNet for predicting image projections of object keypoints by focusing on small-scale errors. Experimental results show that our proposed technique outperforms state-of-the-art approaches in both “2D projection” and “3D transformation” metrics.

Aiming at the application of parallel mechanism in flexible assembly and polishing， a new 6-DOF coupling parallel mechanism is designed. The mechanism branch chain is designed based on the spiral theory， and the branch chain mechanism is optimized for the purpose of improving the rigidity of the mechanism and reducing the motion inertia. The coupled parallel mechanism is decoupled and analyzed according to the fixed principle， and the kinematics and equivalent motion of the mechanism are obtained. The number of degrees of freedom of the mechanism is verified by the modified G-K formula. Finally， a prototype of the coupled parallel mechanism is fabricated， and a motion control experiment is carried out. The experimental results show that the mechanism configuration is reasonable and practical.

This paper first analyses and summarizes the research status of parallel robots and keeps track of the current development status and research prospects of parallel robots. Kinematics problems of 6-DOF parallel robots are analysed, and a relatively simple inverse kinematics expression has been established for some of the coordinate systems. Because the robot is a highly complex, strongly coupled, and highly nonlinear dynamic system, it is necessary to use a very systematic method to analyse and study the dynamic characteristics of the robot. This paper mainly uses mathematical modelling and PLC modelling methods. Through careful analysis of the structural characteristics of parallel robots, the dynamic equations are established. This article innovatively proposes an idea of using PLC for motion control based on WINCC OA. For most current robot controllers, the position and velocity of the robot are required to measure, and the relevant mathematical model is established. The simulation results showed that the desired control effect has been achieved and will continue in the future. It has laid a certain theoretical foundation for the in-depth study of parallel robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maneuverability, which is closely related to operational performance and safety, is one of the important hydrodynamic properties of an underwater vehicle (UV), and its accurate prediction is essential for preliminary design. The purpose of this study is to analyze the turning ability of a UV while rising or submerging; the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method was used to numerically predict the six-DOF self-propelled maneuvers of submarine model BB2, including steady turning maneuvers and space spiral maneuvers. In this study, the overset mesh method was used to deal with multi-body motion, the body force method was used to describe the thrust distribution of the propeller at the model scale, and the numerical prediction also included the dynamic deflection of the control planes, where the command was issued by the autopilot. Then, this study used the published model test results of the tank to verify the effectiveness of the CFD prediction of steady turning maneuvers, and the prediction of space spiral maneuvers was carried out on this basis. The numerical results show that the turning motion has a great influence on the depth and pitch attitude of the submarine, and a “stern heavier” phenomenon occurs to a submarine after steering. The underwater turning of a submarine can not only reduce the speed to brake but also limit the dangerous depth. The conclusion is of certain reference significance for submarine emergency maneuvers.

Georeferencing a kinematic Multi-Sensor-System (MSS) within crowded areas, such as inner-cities, is a challenging task that should be conducted in the most reliable way possible. In such areas, the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data either contain inevitable errors or are not continuously available. Regardless of the environmental conditions, an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) is always subject to drifting, and therefore it cannot be fully trusted over time. Consequently, suitable filtering techniques are required that can compensate for such possible deficits and subsequently improve the georeferencing results. Sometimes it is also possible to improve the filter quality by engaging additional complementary information. This information could be taken from the surrounding environment of the MSS, which usually appears in the form of geometrical constraints. Since it is possible to have a high amount of such information in an environment of interest, their consideration could lead to an inefficient filtering procedure. Hence, suitable methodologies are necessary to be extended to the filtering framework to increase the efficiency while preserving the filter quality. In the current paper, we propose a Dual State Iterated Extended Kalman Filter (DSIEKF) that can efficiently georeference a MSS by taking into account additional geometrical information. The proposed methodology is based on implicit measurement equations and nonlinear geometrical constraints, which are applied to a real case scenario to further evaluate its performance.

This paper deals with three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulations involving 3D moving geometries with large displacements on unstructured meshes. Such simulations are of great value to industry, but remain very time-consuming. A robust moving mesh algorithm coupling an elasticity-like mesh deformation solution and mesh optimizations was proposed in previous works, which removes the need for global remeshing when performing large displacements. The optimizations, and in particular generalized edge/face swapping, preserve the initial quality of the mesh throughout the simulation. We propose to integrate an Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian compressible flow solver into this process to demonstrate its capabilities in a full CFD computation context. This solver relies on a local enforcement of the discrete geometric conservation law to preserve the order of accuracy of the time integration. The displacement of the geometries is either imposed, or driven by fluid–structure interaction (FSI). In the latter case, the six degrees of freedom approach for rigid bodies is considered. Finally, several 3D imposed-motion and FSI examples are given to validate the proposed approach, both in academic and industrial configurations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Zengwen desilting tunnel project installed an Elephant Trunk Steel Pipe (ETSP) at the bottom of the reservoir that is designed to connect the new bypass tunnel and reach downward to the sediment surface. Since ETSP is huge and its underwater installation is an unprecedented construction method, there are several uncertainties in its dynamic motion changes during installation. To assure construction safety, a 1:20 ETSP scale model was built to simulate the underwater installation procedure, and its six-degrees-of-freedom (6-DOF) motion parameters were monitored by offline underwater 3D rigid object tracking and photogrammetry. Three cameras were used to form a multicamera system, and several auxiliary devices—such as waterproof housing, tripods, and a waterproof LED—were adopted to protect the cameras and to obtain clear images in the underwater environment. However, since it is difficult for the divers to position the camera and ensure the camera field of view overlap, each camera can only observe the head, middle, and tail parts of ETSP, respectively, leading to a small overlap area among all images. Therefore, it is not possible to perform a traditional method via multiple images forward intersection, where the camera’s positions and orientations have to be calibrated and fixed in advance. Instead, by tracking the 3D coordinates of ETSP and obtaining the camera orientation information via space resection, we propose a multicamera coordinate transformation and adopted a single-camera relative orientation transformation to calculate the 6-DOF motion parameters. The offline procedure is to first acquire the 3D coordinates of ETSP by taking multiposition images with a precalibrated camera in the air and then use the 3D coordinates as control points to perform the space resection of the calibrated underwater cameras. Finally, we calculated the 6-DOF of ETSP by using the camera orientation information through both multi- and single-camera approaches. In this study, we show the results of camera calibration in the air and underwater environment, present the 6-DOF motion parameters of ETSP underwater installation and the reconstructed 4D animation, and compare the differences between the multi- and single-camera approaches.

The scale factor drifts and other long-term instability drifts of Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) inertial sensors are the main contributors of the position and orientation errors in high dynamic environments. In this paper, a novel high dynamic micro vibrator, which could provide high acceleration and high angular rate rotation with integrated optical displacement detector, is proposed. Commercial MEMS inertial sensors, including 3-axis accelerometer and 6-axis inertial measurement unit which is about 3 mm * 3 mm * 1 mm with 19 mg, could be bonded on the vibration platform of the micro vibrator to perform in-situ during the self-calibration procedure. The high dynamic micro vibrator is fabricated by a fully-integrated MEMS process, including lead zirconate titanate (PZT) film deposition, PZT and electrodes patterning, and structural ion etching. The optical displacement detector, using vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) and photoelectric diodes (PD), is integrated on the top of the package to measure the 6-DOF vibrating displacement with the detecting resolution of 150 nm in the range of 500 μm. The maximum out-of-plane acceleration of the z-axis vibrating platform loaded with commercial 3-axis accelerometer (H3LIS331DL) achieves above 16 g and the maximum angular velocity achieves above 720°/s when the driving voltage is ±6 V. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an end-to-end learning framework for performing 6-DOF odometry by using only inertial data obtained from a low-cost IMU. The proposed inertial odometry method allows leveraging inertial sensors that are widely available on mobile platforms for estimating their 3D trajectories. For this purpose, neural networks based on convolutional layers combined with a two-layer stacked bidirectional LSTM are explored from the following three aspects. First, two 6-DOF relative pose representations are investigated: one based on a vector in the spherical coordinate system, and the other based on both a translation vector and an unit quaternion. Second, the loss function in the network is designed with the combination of several 6-DOF pose distance metrics: mean squared error, translation mean absolute error, quaternion multiplicative error and quaternion inner product. Third, a multi-task learning framework is integrated to automatically balance the weights of multiple metrics. In the evaluation, qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted with publicly-available inertial odometry datasets. The best combination of the relative pose representation and the loss function was the translation and quaternion together with the translation mean absolute error and quaternion multiplicative error, which obtained more accurate results with respect to state-of-the-art inertial odometry techniques.

Space robots can perform some tasks in harsh environment as assistants of astronauts or substitutions of astronauts. Taking the limited working time and the arduous task of the astronauts in the space station into account, an astronaut assistant robot (AAR-2) applied in the space station is proposed and designed in this paper. The AAR-2 is achieved with some improvements on the basis of AAR-1 which was designed before. It can exploit its position and attitude sensors and control system to free flight or hover in the space cabin. And it also has a definite environmental awareness and artificial intelligence to complete some specified tasks under the control of astronauts or autonomously. In this paper, it mainly analyzes and controls the 6-DOF motion of the AAR-2. Firstly, the system configuration of AAR-2 is specifically described, and the movement principles are analyzed. Secondly, according to the physical model of the AAR-2, the Newton - Euler equation is applied in the preparation of space dynamics model of 6-DOF motion. Then, according to the mathematical model's characteristics which are nonlinear and strong coupling, a dual closed loop position and attitude controller based on fuzzy sliding mode control is proposed and designed. Finally, simulation experiments are appropriate to provide for AAR-2 control system by using Matlab/Simulink . From the simulation results it can be observed that the designed fuzzy sliding mode controller can control the 6-DOF motion of AAR-2 quickly and precisely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the key issues in robotics is finding high-performance manipulator structures. To evaluate the performance of a parallel manipulator, researchers mostly use kinematic performance indices (such as condition number, minimum singular value, dexterity, and manipulability), which are based on inverse Jacobian matrices. Driving the inverse Jacobian matrix of even one parallel manipulator is a very cumbersome process. However, in this paper, general equations for the inverse Jacobian matrices of 195 GSP mechanisms are symbolically derived by considering 4 basic leg types having 1 angular and 4 distance constraints. With the help of these general equations, the development of the inverse Jacobian matrix for a GSP mechanism can be achieved by defining only the leg connection points on the base and moving platforms with minimum cost. Having derived the inverse Jacobian matrices, one can directly compute kinematic performance indices to measure and compare the manipulator performance of the 195 GSP mechanism. These analyses may yield new high-performance GSP mechanisms for use in engineering, medical device design, and other applied branches. Two different mechanisms (symmetrical and asymmetrical) are given as examples to describe the methodology for deriving the inverse Jacobian matrices. Finally, 2 numerical examples are given for illustrating the practical applications of the procedure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, dynamics of a Maglev vehicle was analyzed and controls utilizing an optimized damping and an LQR algorithms were designed to stabilize the vehicle. The dynamics of magnetically levitated and propelled Maglev vehicle are complex and inherently unstable. Moreover, 6-DOF system dynamics is highly nonlinear and coupled. The proposed control schemes provide the dynamic stability and controllability, which computer simulations confirmed the effectiveness.

In this work, we combined the use of (i) overset meshes, (ii) a 6 degree-of-freedom (6-DOF) motion solver, and (iii) an eddy-resolving flow simulation approach to resolve the drag and secondary movement of large-sized cylinders settling in a quiescent fluid at moderate terminal Reynolds numbers ( 1500 < Re < 28 , 000 ) . These three strategies were implemented in a series of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solutions to describe the fluid-structure interactions and the resulting effects on the cylinder motion. Using the drag coefficient, oscillation period, and maximum angular displacement as baselines, the findings show good agreement between the present CFD results and corresponding data of published laboratory experiments. We discussed the computational expense incurred in using the present modeling approach. We also conducted a preceding simulation of flow past a fixed cylinder at Re=3900, which tested the influence of the turbulence approach (time-averaging vs. eddy-resolving) and the meshing strategy (continuous vs. overset) on the numerical results. The outputs indicated a strong effect of the former and an insignificant influence of the latter. The long-term motivation for the present study is the need to understand the motion of an autonomous sensor of cylindrical shape used to measure responses to the hydraulic conditions occurring in operating hydropower turbines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel support mechanism for a wind tunnel model is designed, built, and demonstrated on an aerodynamic platform undergoing dynamic maneuvers, tested with periodic motions up to 20 Hz. The platform is supported by a 6-DOF (six degrees of freedom) traverse that utilizes eight thin wires, each mounted to a servo motor with an in-line load cell to accurately monitor or control the platform motion and force responses. The system is designed such that simultaneous control of the servo motors effects motion within ±50 mm translations, ±15° pitch, ±9° yaw, and ±8° roll at lower frequencies. The traverse tracks a desired trajectory and resolves the induced forces on the platform at 1 kHz. The effected motion of the platform is measured at 0.6 kHz with a motion capture system, which utilizes six near-infrared (NIR) cameras for full spatial and temporal resolution of the platform motion, which is used for feedback control. The traverse allows different platform model geometries to be tested, and the present work demonstrates its capabilities on an axisymmetric bluff body. Programmable timed outputs are synchronized relative to the model motion and can be used for triggering external systems and processes. In the present study, particle image velocimetry (PIV) is used to characterize the realized wakes of the platform undergoing canonical motions that are effected by this new wind tunnel traverse.

Abstract: Using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), unsteady flow-field related to multi-store separating from aircraft was researched. The unsteady flow-field''s change and multi-store''s movement were interacted and interdepended. Unstructured dynamic mesh, Euler equation, 6-DOF kinematics, dynamics Equations of rigid body were solved and updated at the same physics time step with loosing coupling. AEDC wind tunnel test model is computed in this paper, the result of solution is in very good agreement with the wind tunnel test result. Last, multi-store separating from aircraft are modeled and simulated. The simulated results indicate that the movement of border upon stores has severe aerodynamic interfere action. The sequence and distance of multi-store have determinant influence for safe separation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We developed a novel piezoelectrically actuated 6 degree-of-freedom (DOF) stage for micropositioning. To achieve a parallel mechanism with high stiffness, compact size, and low parasitic motion for 6-DOF positioning, an orthogonal actuator configuration is proposed and actuation units are carefully designed. For the purpose of suppressing parasitic motion in the overall stage, the ratios of the lateral stiffness to actuating directional stiffness of the actuation units are minimized under the condition that the stress at any point in the stage does not exceed the allowable strength. Flexure hinges and lever linkages are effectively applied to the horizontal and vertical actuation units. A physics-based model of the stage is developed to ensure low system order and high reliability. The model parameters are estimated by experiment and finite element analysis. Open-loop tests including sinusoidal and step responses verify low parasitic motion and reliability of the model. Closed-loop step responses with a model-based controller validate the high micropositioning performance of the stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study addresses the trajectory tracking control of a 6-DOF (degrees of freedom) hydraulic parallel robot manipulator with uncertain load disturbances. As load disturbances are the main external disturbances of the parallel robot manipulators and have a significant impact on system tracking performance, many researchers have been devoted to synthesize advanced control methods for improving the system robustness under the assumption that load disturbances are bounded. However, load disturbances are uncertain and vary in a large range in real situation happening in most hydraulic parallel robot manipulators, which is opposed to the assumption. In this paper, the load disturbances are directly measured by force sensors. Then a sliding mode control with discontinuous projection-based adaptation laws is proposed to improve the tracking performance of the parallel robot manipulator. Simulations and experiments with typical desired trajectory are presented, and the results show that good tracking performance is achieved in the presence of uncertain load disturbances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article develops the model of bone deformities, making 6-DOF Parallel Mechanism have widely applied to correction of deformities. The platform’s positional direct solution is the posture of the motion platform. Malformation can be measured by X-ray, based on the space coordinate transformation can find the final posture of the motion platform. Regarding the reverse solution to platform kinematics the paper gives a quick arithmetic program, six actuators to realize motion requirements. For the computer-assisted fracture reduction, we produced an application interface.