Simplified Analysis of the Bent Crank Oscillator Mechanism

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a simple method of analyzing the “bent” crank oscillator, a spatial mechanism often used to generate a reciprocating motion. The exact solution of this mechanism is known. However, the solution is so complicated that the physical characteristics of the kinematic behavior are completely buried under the rigor of exact analysis. In this paper it is shown how a reasonably accurate solution may be obtained through an application of series expansion and proper approximations. The final solution is so simple that the numerical results can be obtained without the use of a computer and the physical characteristics of the motion are clearly brought out in the order of significance.