Dear Subscribers,

I hope this rather information-rich issue will compensate for the long pause
since our last newsletter. Not only is the list of links quite long this time
but some of the links point to quite some interesting web pages. In addition,
we have updated our web site with several reviews and one intriguing company
profile.

Since this issue refers to quite a few "Sorry-learn-Japanese" web pages, I
would like to give you a hint to grasping the essence of information presented
in those pages, without even learning the kanji. Just go to AltaVista at
http://world.altavista.com/, paste in the URL of the Japanese page, select
"Japanese to English", and hit the "Translate" button. The result is not
pretty but is usually intelligible. And don't delay -- many of these pages are
here today and gone tomorrow.

Best wishes,

Ilian Bonev
(http://www.parallemic.org)


April 15, 2002
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--SITE UPDATES--
* An innovative hexapod design for nuclear simulations by Symetrie
  (http://www.parallemic.org/WhosWho/Companies/Profile006.html).
* Manta parallel robot: a 4-DOF robot for inexpensive material handling
  (http://www.parallemic.org/Reviews/Review010.html).
* HANDLEX: a low-cost hexapod for material handling
  (http://www.parallemic.org/Reviews/Review009.html).
* Orthoglide: a new PKM based on the Delta robot principle
  (http://www.parallemic.org/Reviews/Review011.html).

--ANNOUNCEMENTS--
* The program of the upcoming ARK 2002 is already available
  (http://www-iri.upc.es/people/thomas/program.html).
* Qinetiq has just bought Motionbase
  (http://www.qinetiq.com, http://www.motionbase.com).

--NEW LINKS--
* Various motion bases offered by Czech Pragolet (!!!)
  (http://www.volweb.cz/pragolet/eprodukty.htm).
* A high precision hexapod by ALIO Industries (!!!)
  (http://www.alioindustries.com/prod01.htm).
* JSC LAPIK: hexapod-based CMM and PKM (!!)
  (http://www.rusmarket.com/lapik/eng/).
* Horseback riding medical therapy base on ... a hexapod (!!)
  (http://www.mew.co.jp/press/0108/0108-15.htm).
* A Linear Delta mini robot and a 6-DOF 6-PUS parallel robot (!!)
  (http://www.vcnet.fukui.fukui.jp/~koji-kon/index.html,
   http://www.vcnet.fukui.fukui.jp/~koji-kon/himalayan.htm).
* Hexel's Hexabot gets a No-Go for telescope maneuvering (!) 
  (http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/~skerner/hexabot/).
* Simetrix: virtual reality thrill ride simulators (!)
  (http://www.simetrixinc.com).
* A micro stage 6-DOF parallel mechanism
  (http://www.toyota-ti.ac.jp/kikai/5k60/).
* Driving simulator at the Center for Traffic Sciences (Würzburg)
  (http://www.psychologie.uni-wuerzburg.de/methoden/methff.html,
   http://www-info1.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/de/publikationen/DirKin.htm).
* Modular Robotics & Robot Locomotion (web site updated)
  (http://www.ntu.edu.sg/mpe/Research/Groups/Mod_Robotics/).
* Modular Dexterous Hand at the University of Maryland
  (http://www.isr.umd.edu/ISR/accomplishments/028_ModularDexterousHand/).
* Motion simulator by Control & Measurement Systems
  (http://www.cmtec.com/contmeas/motion.htm).
* A Stewart platform for the study of human spine biomechanics
  (http://www.uoguelph.ca/~walkerm/mysite/research.htm,
   http://www.uoguelph.ca/~walkerm/ugbiomech1/images/kevin.img.jpg).
* A nice-looking 3-RRR planar parallel robot
  (http://robot.me.gatech.edu/prototypes.html).
* A personal collage showing several Tokyo University parallel robots 
  (http://www.geocities.co.jp/Playtown-Domino/4060/pre/).
* A 6-DOF 6-PUS micro parallel robot by Olympus
  (http://www.olympus.co.jp/Special/OTF80/mifa.html).
* A 2-DOF personal simulator by Kawada Industries
  (http://www.kawada.co.jp/ams/jisseki/jc.html).
* Kayaba Industry's gigantic 240-passenger motion simulator
  (http://www.kyb.co.jp/6culture/61culture/gijitaiken.html).
* Mitsubishi Precision's motion simulator
  (http://www.mind.ne.jp/mpc/prodct/sim/index.html).
* A hexapod PKM teleoperated via another Stewart platform haptic device
  (http://mech.gifu-u.ac.jp/~mutolab/reserch/6axis/6axis.htm).

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