4-Bar Linkage Assembly Final Report

ME357 A1
Professor Scott Morris
Jordan Marabello
5 December 2021
Abstract:

The assignment was to create a four-bar linkage mechanism which operates in a singular

plane of motion. The linkage dimensions must not exceed the bounds of an 8.5-inch by 11-inch

sheet of paper. For this particular assignment, the input link (Side1) was opposite to the output

link (Side2) and the base link (Base) was opposite to the couple link (Top). The input link had a

full 360 degree range of motion, which ended up creating a curved motion for the output link.

This means the motion was a continuous crank-rocker motion. An assembly was created in

Solidworks with nuts, bolts, fasteners, and the links. Part drawings, an assembly drawing, and an

exploded view assembly drawing were all created to document and report the process. A motion

analysis was also created, showing the four-bar linkage in motion, going through one full cycle,

as well as tracing the output curve.

Setup:

The “Base” base link is 64 mm, the “Side1” crank link is 16 mm, the “Side2” rocker link

is 35 mm, and the “Top” coupler linkage is 55 mm. The output point for the trace curve is the top

right corner of the “Side 2” rocker link. There was an 8.5-inch by 11-inch motion boundary

constraint, which my linkage was well inside of, which can be seen in the photo of the linkage

with a boundary plane behind it. The configuration of the linkage assembly is crank rocker, since

neither “Side 1” and “Side2” don’t intersect/overlap at any point in the motion cycle, and

“Side1” has a full 360 degrees range of motion.

 The Grashof Condition states “If the sum of the shortest and longest link of a planar

quadrilateral linkage is less than or equal to the sum of the remaining two links, then the shortest

link can rotate fully with respect to a neighboring link” and it is calculated using the following

formula: S + L ≤ P + Q, where S and L are the shor test and longest links, respectively, and P and

Q are the other two links. In this case, S is “Side1”, and L is “Base”. That leads to the following

calculations and results:

S + L = 16 + 64 = 80 mm

P + Q = 35+ 55 = 90 mm

This means the Grashof Condition is met, and from additional calculations, called the transition

functions, we can find what kind of Grashof four-bar linkage it is. The movement of the four-bar
linkage can be classified into eight cases based on these three transition functions and the signs

of the values obtained from the equations.

T1 = P + L - S - Q = 28

T2 = Q + L - S - P = 67

T3 = P + Q - S - L = 10

All three values are positive, which shows that this particular linkage is a crank-rocker linkage.

Results:

Graph 1: The trace path of the output point is graphed below. The distance of the output point

from the origin was measured, and X and Y coordinates were plotted against each other to get

the above graph. The maximum calculated X displacement is 27.288 millimeters and the

minimum calculated Y displacement is 9.131 millimeters

Conclusions:
 Improvements could be made to this design that would make this four bar-linkage more

efficient, effective, and exciting. First, the washers used in this linkage were not effective when it

comes to friction. In the future I would use rubber washers that would have more flexibility

when the linkage is in motion. I would also choose shorter bolts, purely for aesthetic reasons,

since the bolts right now are sticking out of the back of the linkage. Another possible

improvement could be to steer away from the bolts, nuts, and washers and take a different

approach entirely, instead using bearings and fasteners in the hope that it would increase the

smoothness of the linkage motion because of decreased friction.