National University of Singapore

Faculty of Engineering

Drill Problem Set 1: ME4245/EE4304: Robotics by: Marcelo Ang Jr.

1. Frame B is initially coincident to frame A in Figure1(a). Frame B is then rotated 30

degrees about the vector described by the directed line segment from P to Q
(following the right-hand rule). Determine the position and orientation of the new
frame B with respect to frame A. Express your answer in the form of a homogeneous
transformation matrix.

z
A
Q

P
2
y
A
1 Ans:
i 0.876 - 0.296 - 0.382
0.888 y
Out[21]//MatrixForm=
3
x 0.239 0.952 - 0.191
0.144
A
k 0 1. {
0.42 0.0762 0.904 - 0.229
Figure 1 (a) 0 0

(b) Referring to Figure 1(b), determine the homegeneous transformation matrix that
describes frame C in frame A. Also determine the homegeneous transformation matrix
that describes frame A in frame C.
o
30 Ans:
y
C  0 −0.5 0.866 3
 
0 0.866 0.5 0
A
TC = 
z  −1 0 0 2
A  
0 0 0 1
x 2
C  0 0 −1 2 
y  
A  −0.5 0.866 0 15. 
C
TA =
 0.866 0.5 0 −2.598
x  
A  0 0 0 1 
3

Figure 1(b)

1
2. Frames M and C are attached rigidly to a cuboid as shown in Fig. 3. Frame U is
fixed and serves as the universe frame of reference. The cube undergoes the
following motion in the indicated sequence:

1> Rotation about the z axis of Frame C by 30°, then

2> Translation of (1, 2, 3) along Frame C, then
3> Rotation about the x axis of Frame M by 45°, and then
4> Rotation about the y axis of Frame U by 60°.

Let U
TCi and U
TMi be the 4 × 4 homogeneous transformation matrices that
describes the position and orientation of Frames C and M, respectively, in U after
motion i.

Find z
U u ,M
i. TC1 A B line segment lengths:
U
1
ii. TC2 3 C G AD=1
U
D xycc DC=3
iii. TC3 2
yzc y DE=2
U E u,M
iv. TC4 F
v. U
TM 4 x
u,M
Figure 3

Ans:
 −0.866 0.5 0 1  −0.866 0.5 0 .
1134 
   
−0.416 −0.721 −0.555 3 −0.416 −0.721 −0.555 −0.521
U
TC1 =  U
TC2 = 
 −0.277 −0.48 0.832 2  −0.277 −0.48 0.832 3.258 
   
 0 0 0 1  0 0 0 1 

 −0.866 0.354 0.354 1662

.   − 0.6732 − 0.627 0.392 5.05 
   
 −0.416 −0117
. −0.902 −2.696 U  − 0.416 − 0117
. − 0.902 − 2.696
U
TC3 = TC4 = 
 −0.277 −0.928 0.249 4.872  0.611 − 0.77 − 0182
. 0.997 
   
 0 0 0 1   0 0 0 1 
 0.6732 0.304 0.674 2.117 
 
 0.416 0.598 − 0.685 − 3.535
U
TM 4 =
. 
− 0.611 0.742 0.276 − 1169
 
 0 0 0 1 

2
3 Frame C is firmly attached to a corner of the rigid cube with zC parallel xA and yC
parallel to zA, as shown in the figure below. Frame B is located at a fixed position and
orientation with respect to Frame A with xB parallel to zA and the angle 60 degrees
represents a rotation about xB. The following ordered sequence of motions is applied
to the cube

I) rotation about yB by 45 degrees, followed by

II) rotation about xC by 30 degrees.

Find the new position and orientation of Frame C expressed in Frame A.

Ans:

 −0127
. −0140
. . 
0.982 1855
 
 0.927 −0.370 0.067 2.339
A
TC =
 0.354 0.918 0177
. 2.190
 
 0 0 0 1 