An efficient algorithm for computation of manipulator inertia matrix

Abstract

Abstract In this article an efficient algorithm for computation of the manipulator inertia matrix is presented. The algorithm is derived based on Newton's and Euler's laws governing the motion of rigid bodies. Using spatial notations, the algorithm leads to the definition of the composite rigid‐body spatial inertia which is a spatial representation of the notion of augmented body. The equations resulting from this algorithm are derived in a coordinate‐free form. The choice of the coordinate frame for projection of the coordinate‐free equations, that is, the intrinsic equations, is discussed by analyzing the vectors and the tensors involved in the final equations. Previously proposed algorithms, the physical interpretations leading to their derivation, and the redundancy in their computations are analyzed. The developed algorithm achieves a greater efficiency by eliminating the redundancy in the intrinsic equations as well as by a suitable choice of coordinate frame for projection of the intrinsic equations.