Interdisciplinary Applications of Kinematics Proceedings of the International Conference, Lima, Perú, January 9-11, 2008

Kinematics is an exciting area of computational mechanics which plays a central role in a great variety of fields and industrial applications. Apart from research in pure kinematics, the field offers challenging problems of practical relevance that need to be solved in an interdisciplinary manner in order for new technologies to develop. The present book collects a number of important contributions presented during the First Conference on Interdisciplinary Applications of Kinematics (IAK 2008) held in Lima, Peru. To share inspiration and non-standard solutions among the different applications, the conference brought together scientists from several research fields related to kinematics, such as for example, computational kinematics, multibody systems, industrial machines, robotics, biomechanics, mechatronics and chemistry. The conference focused on all aspects of kinematics, namely modeling, optimization, experimental validation, industrial applications, theoretical kinematical methods, and design. The results should be of interest for practicing and research engineers as well as Ph.D. students from the fields of mechanical and electrical engineering, computer science, and computer graphics.

Preface.- 1 Double-Ring Polyhedral Linkages, by Karl Wohlhart.- 2 Robot Handwriting: Why and How?, by Veljko Potkonjak .-  3 A Kinematics Based Methology for the Design of Gangways and Coupler Housings of Railway Vehicles, by Jorge Ambrósio.- 4 Investigation of Self Resonance in Vibration Excitation Systems, by Kazimieras Ragulskis, Ramutis Palevicius, Arvydas Palevicius, Arvydas Barila.- 5 Kinematic Criteria for Structural Synthesis of Maximally Regular Parallel Robots with Planar Motion of the Moving Platform, by Grigore Gogu.- 6 A Design-To-Task Approach for Wire Robots, by Tobias Bruckmann, Lars Mikelsons, Manfred Hiller.- 7 Gait Simulator Based on the Parallel Stewart-Gough Platform, by Gonzalo Sevillano, Dante Elías, Rocío Callupe, Ricardo Marcacuzco, Benjamín Barriga.- 8 A Proposal for a New Definition of the Degree of Freedom of a Mechanism, by Manfred L. Husty, Hans-Peter Schröcker.-  9 Modelling of Mechanisms in Container Glass Forming Machines, by Burkhard Corves.- 10 Predicting Protein Conformational Transitions by Trajectory Planning Through Torsion Angle Propensity Maps, by Christopher Madden, Peter Bohnenkamp,Kazem Kazerounian, Horea Ilies.- 11 Potential Applications of Hybrid Systems in Biomechanics, by Wojciech Kowalczyk.- 12 An Alternative for Human Gait Modeling Using the Bondgraph Technique, by Roberto Hernani, Gregorio Romero, Ramsi Jazmati.- 13 Optimized Kinematical Positioning and Guidance of a Serial Robot for Motion Simulation, by Matthias Marx, Michele Conconi, Martin Tändl, Andrés Kecskeméthy .- 14 A One-Degree-of-Freedom Spherical Wrist for the Modelling of Passive Motion of the Human Ankle Joint, by Vincenzo Parenti-Castelli.