Iterative coordinate transformation procedure for one class of robots

The processing of robot paths in Cartesian coordinates allows on-line path modification in light of data from conveyer, sensor, and other sources, which typically operate in Cartesian terms. Unfortunately, advanced robotic systems operate in terms of revolute and sliding joint geometries that are not easily translated into Cartesian equivalents. An iterative procedure has been developed for one class of articulated robots which produces an exact solution for the wrist tip position coordinates and an approximate solution for the wrist orientation coordinates. Attention is given to the procedure's convergence characteristics.