Synthesis of planar multilink mechanisms based on genetic algorithms

In this paper we present a method for synthesizing planar multilink mechanisms which can generate desired planar paths. In previous studies, various optimization methods were applied to synthesize path-generation planar multilink mechanisms. The techniques used, however, were often cumbersome and computationally costly to apply. These problems are mainly due to the high nonlinearity of synthesis mechanisms and the existence of many local solutions. Genetic algorithms have recently been noted as a method for solving the problems described above. Therefore, a new method for synthesizing planar multilink mechanisms is presented based on genetic algorithms. The present method require no initial mechanisms and can search for multiple appropriate mechanisms simultaneously. Furthermore, it can be applied to various synthesis problems. We focus on a closed curve adapting synthesis. As an example, configurations of 4-bar and 6-bar planar mechanisms are determined in a practical application.