A Finite Element Method for Analyzing the Dynamic Behavior of Thin-Walled Tubular Robotic Arms Based on Carrera Unified Formulation

Based on Carrera Unified Formulation (CUF) and refined one-dimensional(1D) higher-order beam theory, a method is proposed to analyze the dynamics of thin-walled tubular robotic arms in this paper. The accuracy and reliability of the present model are demonstrated by comparing with other beam models. The proposed refined beam model is able to accurately characterize the three-dimensional dynamics of pipe structures. First nine orders of natural frequency error within 1.37%, which improved modeling accuracy and computational efficiency. The proposed model has a wider scope of application, it can be applied to pipe structures with a length-to-diameter ratio of 4 or more.