SIMULATION AND ANALYSIS OF POWER EXTRACTION FROM A CRANK-ROCKER MECHANISM AT THE ROCKER PIVOT USING A CONVERTER MECHANISM

This project investigates the extraction of power from the rocker pivot of the
crank-rocker mechanism using a converter mechanism. The crank-rocker is operated
using a force (alternating constant force / 2-stroke combustion force) applied at the
rocker tip, while the function of the crank is to limit the rocker motion. For this
project, the crank-rocker and the converter mechanism computer models were
developed in CATIA and ADAMS. The output characteristics at the rocker pivot of
the crank-rocker were initially studied without the converter mechanism for the
variation of parameters such as the oscillating angle and time ratio using basic
linkages model. A set of simplified equations was formulated to predict the output
speed of a converter mechanism.