
162 Make: Robotic Arms
incorporating inverse kinematics. If we were
able to calculate the inverse kinematics of our
three-DOF, 3D robotic arm, we could then use
a rotary encoder to increase or decrease the
target x, y, and z values of the system. This would
greatly increase the ease of control, primarily
because we would be able to control the system
using just three variables, as opposed to the four
variables required at this point in our software-
development journey.
In the next chapter, we’re going to discuss what
it will take to determine the inverse kinematics
of our newest robotic arm now that we’re moving
from 2D to 3D robotic systems. ...