Note that the shoulder and the wrist of the robot arm have two DOF each, as there are two perpendicular servos whose axes intersect in the joint.įIGURE 1. As observed in Figure 1, the robot arm also has a shoulder, elbow, wrist, and “hand” (end effector). Many industrial and hobbyist robot arms have six DOF.Ī robot arm can be compared with a human arm, which has at least six DOF. Why exactly six DOF? Because six DOF is the minimum that an arm needs to be able to reach to any point within a specific volume of space from every possible angle with its end effector (claw, manipulator, hand, etc.).
To find out how many degrees of freedom a robot arm has, it is enough to just count the amount of servos since each servo provides one DOF (of rotational movement). Most types of robot arms have only revolute joints, materialized with servos. In the case of robot arms, rotational and translational movements are produced by revolute and prismatic joints, respectively.
Surely, one of the first questions for those new to robotics or mechanics is: What does “Degree of Freedom” mean? The DOF of a mechanical system is a specific mode in which said system can move that is, a rotational or a translational movement. What does “Degree of Freedom” (DOF) Mean Exactly? Let’s start first with some theory and basic concepts about robot arms. This would allow for future development, like adding robotic vision by means of a webcam. I also wanted to be able to interface to the arm in as many ways as I could imagine with other devices (such as my laptop, smartphone, etc.). I decided to create an Arduino controlled robot arm that I could use as a platform to test all the theory that had been covered, and experiment with new ideas. Being involved for some time with tinkering and electronics, I decided I was going to build my own robot arm and try to implement everything I had learned in that course in the “real world.”
A while back, I completed a MOOC (massive open online course) about robotics, which got me immersed in the amazing world of robot arms.
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