An Application of Boolean Algebra to the Motion of Epicyclic Drives

Abstract

The kinematic structure of epicyclic drives has been investigated with the aid of Boolean algebra. The correspondence between the graph representation of the structure, the mechanism, and the form of the displacement equations has been derived. A canonical graph representation has been given. A method, believed to be novel, is described for the determination of the algebraic displacement equations by inspection, directly from the kinematic structure. The theory can be applied similarly to dynamic analysis and computer-aided sketching and animation.