Abstract
This paper presents a new framework of kinematic tolerance synthesis and describes the implemented algorithm for planar mechanical systems comprised of higher kinematic pairs. Input to the synthesis algorithm is a parametric model of the mechanical system with allowed parameter ranges (tolerance ranges). The model is specified as the part profiles consisting of line and arc segments and the motion axes along which each part moves. The algorithm analyzes tolerance in generalized configuration space, called contact zones bounding the worst-case variations, and identifies bad system variations. The bad system variations then are removed out of the parameter ranges by adjusting the nominal parameter values if possible and then shrinking the ranges otherwise. This cycle is repeated until no more bad variations we found. I show the effectiveness of the algorithm by case studies on several mechanisms.