CHAPTER
EIGHT
COMPUTER-AIDED MECHANISM ANALYSIS
OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this chapter, the student will be
able to:
1. Understand the basics of a general spreadsheet.
2. Understand the strategy for using a general spreadsheet
for mechanism analysis.
3. Create computer routines for determining kinematic
properties of either four-bar or slider-crank
mechanisms.
8.1 INTRODUCTION
Throughout the text, both graphical and analytical techniques
of mechanism analysis are introduced. As the more accurate,
analytical solutions are desired for several positions of a
mechanism, the number of calculations can become
unwieldy. In these situations, the use of computer solutions is
appropriate. Computer solutions are also valuable when
several design iterations must be analyzed. In Section 2.2,
“Computer Simulation of Mechanisms,” the use of dedicated
FIGURE 8.1 General spreadsheet.
dynamic analysis software was introduced. This chapter
focuses on other forms of computer approaches to mecha-
nism analysis. These other forms include using spreadsheets
and creating routines using programming languages.
8.2 SPREADSHEETS
Spreadsheets, such as Microsoft® Excel, are very popular in the
professional environment for a variety of tasks. Spreadsheets
have numerous built-in functions, ease of plotting results, and
the ability to recognize formulas. These analytical features
prompted widespread use of spreadsheets for more routine
mechanism problems. Spreadsheets have been used in various
problem solutions in this text. This section outlines the basics
of using spreadsheets. Of course, the specific software manu-
als should be consulted for further details.
A spreadsheet is arranged in a large array of columns
and rows. The number of columns and rows varies among
the different software products. Column headings are
lettered from A to Z, then from AA to AZ, then BA to BZ,
and so on. Row headings are numbered 1, 2, 3, and so on.
The top corner of a general spreadsheet is shown in Figure 8.1.
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The intersection of a column and a row is called a cell. Each
cell is referred to by a cell address, which consists of the
column and row that define the cell. Cell D3 is defined by the
fourth (D) column and the third row. The cursor can
be moved among cells with either the keyboard (arrow keys)
or a mouse.
The value of a spreadsheet lies in storing, manipulat-
ing, and displaying data contained in a cell. This data
commonly consists of either text, numbers, or formulas.
The spreadsheet shown in Figure 8.2 has text entered into
cells A1, F1, and F2 and numbers entered into cells A2
through A24, G1, and G2.
Although subtle differences may exist in the syntax
among the spreadsheet programs, the logic behind creating
formulas is identical. The syntax given here is applicable to
Microsoft Excel. The user’s manual of another product
should be consulted for the details on any differences in
syntax.
Entering a formula into a cell begins with an equal sign (=).
The actual formula is then constructed using values, operators
(+, –, *, /), cell references (e.g., G2), and functions (e.g., SIN,
AVERAGE, ATAN, and RADIANS). Formulas for kinematic
analysis can get rather complex. As an example, a simple
formula can be placed in cell A8:
= A7 + 10 (8.1)
Although the actual cell contents would contain this formula,
the spreadsheet would visually show the number 60 in cell
A8. The calculation would be automatically performed. For
another example, the following expression can be inserted
into cell B2:
= ASIN(G1 * SIN(A2 * PI()/180)/G2) * 180/PI() (8.2)
FIGURE 8.2 Spreadsheet with text and numbers entered into cells.
This expression represents the angle between the
connecting rod and the sliding plane for an in-line slider-
crank mechanism. It was presented as equation (4.3) in
Chapter 4:
u3 = sin-1 a sin u2 b
L2
(4.3)
L3
The spreadsheet formula assumes that the following
values have been entered:
䊏 θ2 in cell A2
䊏 L2 in cell G1
䊏 L3 in cell G2
It should be noted that as with most computer func-
tions, any reference to angular values must be specified in
radians. Notice that A2, an angle in degrees, is multiplied
by π/180 to convert it to radians. After using the inverse
sine function, ASIN, the resulting value also is an angle in
radians. Therefore, it is converted back to degrees by multi-
plying by 180/π. Excel has predefined RADIANS and
DEGREES functions that can be convenient in conversions.
Equation (4.3) can alternatively be inserted into a cell B2 of
a spreadsheet with:
= DEGREES(ASIN(G1 * SIN(RADIANS(A2))/G2)) (8.3)
If expression (8.1) were typed into A8 and expression
(8.2) or (8.3) were typed into B2, the resulting spreadsheet
would appear as depicted in Figure 8.3. It is important to
remember that as a cell containing input data is changed,
all results are updated. This allows design iterations to be
completed with ease.

FIGURE 8.3 Spreadsheet with formulas entered into A8 and B2.
Another important feature of a spreadsheet is the copy
and paste feature. The contents of a cell can be duplicated and
placed into a new cell. The copy and paste feature eliminates
redundant input of equations into cells.
Cell references in a formula can be either relative or
absolute. Relative references are automatically adjusted
when a copy of the cell is placed into a new cell. Consider the
following formula entered in cell A8:
= A7 + 10
The cell reference A7 is a relative reference to the cell directly
above the cell that contains the formula, A8. If this equation
were copied and placed into cell A9, the new formula would
become
= A8 + 10
Again, the cell reference A8 is a relative one; therefore, the
spreadsheet would automatically adjust the formula.
An absolute address does not automatically adjust the
cell reference after using the copy and paste feature.
However, to specify an absolute reference, a dollar symbol
must be placed prior to the row and column. For example,
an absolute reference to cell G1 must appear as $G$1.
Consider expression (8.2) being placed into cell B2. To
be most efficient, this formula should be slightly modified
to read:
= ASIN($G$1 * (SIN (A2 * PI()/180)/$ G$2)) * 180/PI()
In this manner, only the angle in cell A2 is a relative address.
If the formula were copied to cell B3, the new formula would
become
= ASIN($G$1 * (SIN(A3 * PI()/180)/$G$2)) * 180PI()
Computer-Aided Mechanism Analysis 217
Notice that the address of cell A2 has been automatically
adjusted to read “A3.” The connecting rod angle is calculated
for the crank angle specified in cell A3.
To continue with an analysis of a mechanism, the
following formula can be typed into cell C2:
= 180 - (A2 + B2)
This formula, shown in Figure 8.4, calculates the interior
angle between the crank and connecting rod (equation 4.4):
g = 180° - (u2 + u3) (4.4)
Because the angles are simply added, and a function is not
called, a radian equivalent is not required.
Also, the following formula can be typed into cell D2:
= SQRT(($G$1) ¿ 2 + ($G$2) ¿ 2 -
(2 * $G$1 * $G$2 * COS(C2 * PI()/180)))
This formula calculates the distance from the crank pivot to
the slider pin joint (equation 4.5):
L4 = 3L22 + L23 - 2(L2) (L3)cos g (4.5)
If these two formulas were typed into C2 and D2, and text
descriptions were typed into cells B1, C1, and D1, the
resulting spreadsheet would appear as depicted in Figure 8.4.
Finally, because much care was taken with using absolute
and relative cell addresses in creating the formulas in B2, C2,
and D2, they can be copied into the cells down their respec-
tive columns. The user’s manual should be consulted for the
actual steps needed to copy the data into the remaining cells,
which is usually a simple two- or three-step procedure. The
resulting spreadsheet is shown in Figure 8.5.