Synthesis of a 10-bar driver for planar scale change linkages

In this paper, we consider the problem of designing a planar linkage that generates the scissors action needed to drive a scale changing linkage. The movement is equivalent to guiding a hinged pair of bars such that their end-points follow a line. These two bars form the input to a series of modules in a deployable, or scale changing, linkage. The driving linkage is synthesized by coordinating the movement of the hinged bars using two planar 3R chains, which are then constrained to provide the final drive linkage. The result is a 10-bar driving linkage for use with the scale-changing linkage.