Editor selections by Topic and Unit

The Physics Front is a free service provided by the AAPT in partnership with the NSF/NSDL.

Website Detail Page

Item Picture
published by the Society of Robots
This tutorial provides background information on robotic arm technology and practical instructions for building your own. The author includes free-body diagrams, schematic drawings, help with performing force calculations in the joints, directions for setting torque parameters, and detailed explanations of each component in the system. For learners with little background in physics or engineering, the Robot Arm Calculator Tool determines the lifting capability of the robot arm.

This resource is appropriate for courses in introductory physics or applied physics.

Please note that this resource requires Flash.
Editor's Note: See Related Materials to quickly build a multimedia module for high school on the physics of a robot arm.
Subjects Levels Resource Types
Classical Mechanics
- Applications of Newton's Laws
= Dynamic Torque
- Statics of Rigid Bodies
= Stresses
- Work and Energy
Education Practices
- Active Learning
Other Sciences
- Engineering
- High School
- Lower Undergraduate
- Informal Education
- Instructional Material
= Project
= Student Guide
- Audio/Visual
= Movie/Animation
Appropriate Courses Categories Ratings
- Algebra-based Physics
- AP Physics
- Activity
- New teachers
  • Currently 0.0/5

Want to rate this material?
Login here!

Safety Warnings
Minimal Danger   No Safety Equipment Necessary  


Intended Users:
Educator
Learner
Formats:
text/html
application/flash
Access Rights:
Free access
Forum is available only to registered users; tutorial is open source.
Restriction:
© 2007 Society of Robots
Keywords:
applied physics, bionic arm, engineering physics, force interaction, mechanical engineering, robot arm, robotics, torque
Record Cloner:
Metadata instance created March 15, 2012 by Caroline Hall
Record Updated:
March 19, 2012 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update
when Cataloged:
February 28, 2012

AAAS Benchmark Alignments (2008 Version)

1. The Nature of Science

1C. The Scientific Enterprise
  • 6-8: 1C/M3. No matter who does science and mathematics or invents things, or when or where they do it, the knowledge and technology that result can eventually become available to everyone in the world.

2. The Nature of Mathematics

2B. Mathematics, Science, and Technology
  • 9-12: 2B/H3. Mathematics provides a precise language to describe objects and events and the relationships among them. In addition, mathematics provides tools for solving problems, analyzing data, and making logical arguments.

3. The Nature of Technology

3B. Design and Systems
  • 9-12: 3B/H3. Complex systems have layers of controls. Some controls operate particular parts of the system and some control other controls. Even fully automatic systems require human control at some point.
  • 9-12: 3B/H5. The more parts and connections a system has, the more ways it can go wrong. Complex systems usually have components to detect, back up, bypass, or compensate for minor failures.

11. Common Themes

11A. Systems
  • 6-8: 11A/M2. Thinking about things as systems means looking for how every part relates to others. The output from one part of a system (which can include material, energy, or information) can become the input to other parts. Such feedback can serve to control what goes on in the system as a whole.
  • 6-8: 11A/M3. Any system is usually connected to other systems, both internally and externally. Thus a system may be thought of as containing subsystems and as being a sub-system of a larger system.
  • 9-12: 11A/H2. Understanding how things work and designing solutions to problems of almost any kind can be facilitated by systems analysis. In defining a system, it is important to specify its boundaries and subsystems, indicate its relation to other systems, and identify what its input and output are expected to be.
  • 9-12: 11A/H4. Even in some very simple systems, it may not always be possible to predict accurately the result of changing some part or connection.
ComPADRE is beta testing Citation Styles!

Record Link
AIP Format
Robot Arm Tutorial (Society of Robots, Linthicum, 2007), WWW Document, (http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml).
AJP/PRST-PER
Robot Arm Tutorial (Society of Robots, Linthicum, 2007), <http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml>.
APA Format
Robot Arm Tutorial. (2012, February 28). Retrieved May 24, 2013, from Society of Robots: http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml
Chicago Format
Society of Robots. Robot Arm Tutorial. Linthicum: Society of Robots, February 28, 2012. http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml (accessed 24 May 2013).
MLA Format
Robot Arm Tutorial. Linthicum: Society of Robots, 2007. 28 Feb. 2012. 24 May 2013 <http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml>.
BibTeX Export Format
@misc{ Title = {Robot Arm Tutorial}, Publisher = {Society of Robots}, Volume = {2013}, Number = {24 May 2013}, Month = {February 28, 2012}, Year = {2007} }
Refer Export Format

%T Robot Arm Tutorial
%D February 28, 2012
%I Society of Robots
%C Linthicum
%U http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml
%O text/html

EndNote Export Format

%0 Electronic Source
%D February 28, 2012
%T Robot Arm Tutorial
%I Society of Robots
%V 2013
%N 24 May 2013
%8 February 28, 2012
%9 text/html
%U http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_arm_tutorial.shtml


Disclaimer: ComPADRE offers citation styles as a guide only. We cannot offer interpretations about citations as this is an automated procedure. Please refer to the style manuals in the Citation Source Information area for clarifications.

Citation Source Information

The AIP Style presented is based on information from the AIP Style Manual.

The APA Style presented is based on information from APA Style.org: Electronic References.

The Chicago Style presented is based on information from Examples of Chicago-Style Documentation.

The MLA Style presented is based on information from the MLA FAQ.

This resource is stored in a shared folder.

You must login to access shared folders.

Save to my folders

Supplements

Contribute

Similar Materials