Automatic planning approach for rapid fixture

The automatic identification method for the clamping point of a workpiece based on the solid model was proposed. The concept of force polygon was presented in brief; with the adoption of reduction method of the projecting outline of the workpiece and the help of the reduced polygon of the workpiece, the feasible clamping district for given workpiece could be determined. The feasible clamping plan was constructed by three clamping points each of which was selected from every different clamping district. A specific formula was established to evaluate the quality of the clamping plans and determine the optimal one. Finally, an example was given to verify this approach.