Workspace analysis and verification of cable-driven parallel mechanism for wind tunnel test

Cable-driven parallel mechanism is a special kind of parallel robot in which traditional rigid links are replaced by actuated cables. This provides a new suspension method for wind tunnel test, in which an aircraft model is driven by a number of parallel cables to fulfil 6-DOF motion. The workspace of such a cable robot is limited due to the geometrical and unilateral force constraints, the investigation of which is important for applications requiring large flight space. This paper focuses on the workspace analysis and verification of a redundant constraint 6-DOF cable-driven parallel suspension system. Based on the system motion and dynamic equations, the geometrical interference (either intersection between two cables or between a cable and the aircraft) and cable tension restraint conditions are constructed and analyzed. The hyperplane vector projection strategy is used to solve the aircraft’s orientation and position workspace. Moreover, software ADAMS is used to check the workspace, and experiments are done on the prototype, which adopts a camera to monitor the actual motion space. In addition, the system construction is designed by using a built-in six-component balance to measure the aerodynamic force. The results of simulation and tests show a good consistency, which means that the restraint conditions and workspace solution strategy are valid and can be used to provide guidance for the cable-driven parallel suspension system’s application in wind tunnel tests.