@@chrisspamtest You can contact me using my email address in the "about" box. Make sure to send a copy of your linkage file. It is likely that you built a mechanism that would not work in real life and therefore won't work in the simulator. An example is a connector element or link element sitting in the mechanism that is not connecting to any other links - that connector or link is processed in the simulator and gets a simulation error because it's a mechanical part but has no other elements that define where it should be during the simulator. There are no hints because the the simulator has no other knowledge of why you did this.
@@rectorsquid Hi Dave, found your tool recently at work and have been using it, its great. However one quick question: is it possible to make connection points into a motor, but still allow for that motor to move with the linkage the same way the connection point would? Or does it automatically force a motor to be an anchor. Thanks!
This was an extremely succinct and well-done video. I love how you explained the exact problem you were trying to solve and showed the complete design process. Please continue to make videos.
Thank you so much for the kind words of encouragement, I'm really happy to know that it was clear and helpful! :-) I do intend to post some more videos in the coming months on similar topics.
Brilliant video, I have an almost identical problem. Downloaded Linkage ages ago but haven't taken the time to familiarise. This has got me going straight on track.
This is exactly what I wished I could find. Instead I went brute force to solve my goal. I was making a Murphy bed. I needed the bed to rest at 24” (the height most beds rest at), but simply pivoting the bed up would run it into the low ceiling. I also wanted the head of the bed to be right up against the inner wall (most Murphy beds leave a gap where your pillow or phone could slip down). Furthermore, I wanted the pivot movement to not force the bed to rub along the wall (so I needed everything to pull away from the wall during the pivot). 4-bar linkage was the solution, and I had to drill a hundred holes into scrap boards and planks, to mock up a full scale test. I’d try a configuration, and then change the pivot points. I could not intuit the solution, so I just tried new pivot configurations till I got what I wanted. It took two days. This would’ve been awesome.
I’m sorry that you had to go through all of that trouble to find your solution. I guess it’s true that experience is the knowledge you need just after you needed it. When I was planning this project I thought about using cardboard mockups or trigonometry and a spreadsheet, but it looked like that was going to be really overwhelming. Good luck with your future projects, hopefully one day this will be useful for you.
I'm so glad you're bringing light to this great software! Ive always taken the trial and error approach but would love to learn a more rigorous way to get a ballpark accurate design. What I mean is that you had a general idea of where the points needed to be, maybe from understanding another design or some other avenue. I'd like to learn more about finding those points
Thank you for your comment. I find thang010146's UA-cam channel (ua-cam.com/users/thang010146featured) a great source of inspiration, maybe not so much for finding initial values for the points, but for defining the basic geometry of how the pivot points are related to one another. In general, I find a helpful approach in designing anything is to first identify any constraints, and then design around them. If you can figure out the name of the type of mechanism you're trying to use you can often find ratio tables on Wikipedia or elsewhere. Happy designing!
Yay! A neat video explaining how to use 'Linkage'! I downloaded it a while back but reverted back to using blocks/layout in solidworks because I couldn't quite suss out 'Linkage'. But thanks to this video, I'm going to give it another try 😊
Outstanding video! It would be great to have more of your videos showing simple mechanisms, just to get people going and quickly up to speed. For example you said the piston in a cylinder is simple, please can you model that both in the side view and in the front view (so seperate linkage files)?
Thanks for the comment, I had thought that people might find the preamble boring and lose interest. In the future I will be sure to include a more thorough introduction.
Dave, really appreciate you are sharing your software with others. Was trying to register on your site but unable to complete the email verification step due to invalid link. Can you please look at your end and resend the verification code? Thanks
Can we use metric dimensions? It's just brutal hearing the constant need to convert fractions into 3 significant digits... That aside, it's cool that you can use simply drawing to roughly place points of interest, and then parametrically do precise placement...
Yes you can use metric dimensions, it's a drop down selection on the home tab of the ribbon menu. Regarding imperial fractions, I would search for a machinist chart online and then at least you'll be able to look them up instead of having to calculate them every time. Hope that helps.
Would be really nice if you could do constraints and dimensions instead of having to math out all the coordinates for the anchors. Big change to the software to do that of course.
You can simulate more than 6 bars with the software, but as far as I know it's limited to 2D (single plane). To do 3D linkages you would need something like Blender or Fusion 360.
@@stanhartley5311 I want to ask again. so, this software can't simulate in x-y-z-coordinate?. such as make a linkage with spherical coordinate. Thank you.
Wow, you did a better job creating tutorials for my software than I ever did. Nice job.
Thank you so much, it was my pleasure. Thank you for making such a great tool available for free for people to use.
How do you fix "this element cannot be simulated" with no hints on why. No matter what I do. Is there some sort of methodology to follow?
@@chrisspamtest You can contact me using my email address in the "about" box. Make sure to send a copy of your linkage file. It is likely that you built a mechanism that would not work in real life and therefore won't work in the simulator. An example is a connector element or link element sitting in the mechanism that is not connecting to any other links - that connector or link is processed in the simulator and gets a simulation error because it's a mechanical part but has no other elements that define where it should be during the simulator. There are no hints because the the simulator has no other knowledge of why you did this.
@@rectorsquid Hi Dave, found your tool recently at work and have been using it, its great. However one quick question: is it possible to make connection points into a motor, but still allow for that motor to move with the linkage the same way the connection point would? Or does it automatically force a motor to be an anchor. Thanks!
This was an extremely succinct and well-done video. I love how you explained the exact problem you were trying to solve and showed the complete design process. Please continue to make videos.
Thank you so much for the kind words of encouragement, I'm really happy to know that it was clear and helpful! :-) I do intend to post some more videos in the coming months on similar topics.
Cannot thank you enough. Clear language, sweet n short. Thumbs up.
Thank you so much, that means a lot. Glad I could help you out!
OMG this was so helpful. Didn't know this tool existed but exactly what I needed. Clear and helpful instructions!!
amazing tutorial, first time i was able to follow along and actually make something. Thank you!
Brilliant video, I have an almost identical problem. Downloaded Linkage ages ago but haven't taken the time to familiarise. This has got me going straight on track.
This is exactly what I wished I could find. Instead I went brute force to solve my goal. I was making a Murphy bed. I needed the bed to rest at 24” (the height most beds rest at), but simply pivoting the bed up would run it into the low ceiling. I also wanted the head of the bed to be right up against the inner wall (most Murphy beds leave a gap where your pillow or phone could slip down). Furthermore, I wanted the pivot movement to not force the bed to rub along the wall (so I needed everything to pull away from the wall during the pivot). 4-bar linkage was the solution, and I had to drill a hundred holes into scrap boards and planks, to mock up a full scale test. I’d try a configuration, and then change the pivot points. I could not intuit the solution, so I just tried new pivot configurations till I got what I wanted. It took two days. This would’ve been awesome.
I’m sorry that you had to go through all of that trouble to find your solution. I guess it’s true that experience is the knowledge you need just after you needed it.
When I was planning this project I thought about using cardboard mockups or trigonometry and a spreadsheet, but it looked like that was going to be really overwhelming.
Good luck with your future projects, hopefully one day this will be useful for you.
This really was a fantastic video, with back ground on what you needed to solve, well done!
I'm so glad you're bringing light to this great software! Ive always taken the trial and error approach but would love to learn a more rigorous way to get a ballpark accurate design. What I mean is that you had a general idea of where the points needed to be, maybe from understanding another design or some other avenue. I'd like to learn more about finding those points
Thank you for your comment. I find thang010146's UA-cam channel (ua-cam.com/users/thang010146featured) a great source of inspiration, maybe not so much for finding initial values for the points, but for defining the basic geometry of how the pivot points are related to one another.
In general, I find a helpful approach in designing anything is to first identify any constraints, and then design around them. If you can figure out the name of the type of mechanism you're trying to use you can often find ratio tables on Wikipedia or elsewhere. Happy designing!
I need an over center lockout under a trap door. Installing the software now.
Yay! A neat video explaining how to use 'Linkage'! I downloaded it a while back but reverted back to using blocks/layout in solidworks because I couldn't quite suss out 'Linkage'. But thanks to this video, I'm going to give it another try 😊
this sort of program is exactly what I was looking for thank you for sharing this!
Great video and great software for planning a mechanism!
Thank you so much! It is a great tool, even if you have an advanced CAD tool you can't beat how quickly Linkage can iterate designs.
Outstanding video! It would be great to have more of your videos showing simple mechanisms, just to get people going and quickly up to speed. For example you said the piston in a cylinder is simple, please can you model that both in the side view and in the front view (so seperate linkage files)?
Thanks for the comment, I had thought that people might find the preamble boring and lose interest. In the future I will be sure to include a more thorough introduction.
Great tutorial! Thanks!
Thank you so much!
That was an excellent video
Brother. Huge thanks!
What an amazing tutorial man! Keep up the good work!
Thank you for the kind words, you made my day.
Dave, really appreciate you are sharing your software with others. Was trying to register on your site but unable to complete the email verification step due to invalid link. Can you please look at your end and resend the verification code? Thanks
Thank you! I was already despairing I'll need to buy Autodesk Inventor to be able to design such systems.
Happy to be able to help!
Can we use metric dimensions?
It's just brutal hearing the constant need to convert fractions into 3 significant digits...
That aside, it's cool that you can use simply drawing to roughly place points of interest, and then parametrically do precise placement...
Yes you can use metric dimensions, it's a drop down selection on the home tab of the ribbon menu. Regarding imperial fractions, I would search for a machinist chart online and then at least you'll be able to look them up instead of having to calculate them every time. Hope that helps.
This is incredible.
Would be really nice if you could do constraints and dimensions instead of having to math out all the coordinates for the anchors. Big change to the software to do that of course.
Thanks for this
My pleasure 😊
Hi, I want to ask.
Is this software can simulation 3D with 6 or more bar linkage?
Thank you.
You can simulate more than 6 bars with the software, but as far as I know it's limited to 2D (single plane). To do 3D linkages you would need something like Blender or Fusion 360.
@@stanhartley5311 I want to ask again. so, this software can't simulate in x-y-z-coordinate?. such as make a linkage with spherical coordinate.
Thank you.
@@Lulu-fl8lk It is only 2D. It only handles x,y coordinates.
thank you
Cómo se llama el.programa ? Gracias
very useful
🔥💕👍
Hi Stan, I would like to talk to you. Is there a way I can either call or email?
I added my email to the channel's about page, talk to you soon.
Well, drat!
Or "snap!"
Windows only... Looked good while my ignorance lasted...
Still, good stuff.
👍👍👍
It seems a bit easier to use than Geogebra.
Hey cool video I enjoy watching it! I’m working on a project maybe u can help me out with? Thanks
Hacks