Abstract
A new integrated approach to the design of high speed planar mechanisms is presented. The resulting nonlinear programming formulation combines both the kinematic and kinetostatic synthesis aspects of mechanism design. The multiobjective optimization techniques presented in this work facilitate the design of a linkage to meet several kinematic and dynamic design criteria. The method can be used for motion, path, and function generation problems. The nonlinear programming formulation also permits an imposition of constraints to eliminate solutions which possess undesirable kinematic and motion characteristics. To model the vague and imprecise information in the problem formulation, the tools of fuzzy set theory have been used. A novel method of solving the resulting fuzzy multiobjective problem using mathematical programming techniques is presented. The outlined procedure is expected to be useful in situations where doubt arises about the exactness of permissible values, degree of credibility, and correctness of statements and judgements.
