Rotational Axis Parameters

The rotational axis of a path interpolation with rotation must be a single turn axis (the Single Turn Mode parameter must be set to true). At position 0, the rotational axis is pointing in the +X direction. Motion of the rotational axis in the positive direction corresponds to counterclockwise rotation. Each 360 degree turn of the rotational axis is equivalent to moving a distance equal to the Single Turn Encoder Count. The following figure shows the positions of the rotational axis when it points in the +X, -X, +Y, and -Y directions.

As the X and Y axes move along the path, the rotational axis will continuously point in the direction of motion. The following figure shows the motion of the rotational axis while executing a simple path.

The X and Y axes are rotated around the center of rotation (centerOfRotation) as the rotational axis rotates. The X and Y axes will move by the offset amount caused by the rotation, while also continuing to travel along the path.

Disabling the Rotational Motion of the X and Y Axes

To disable the motion of the X and Y axes around the center of rotation as the rotational axis rotates, set the disableXYRotationalMotion option to 1. This option is used for testing the path.

Disabling the Rotational Axis

To disable the rotational axis completely, set the disableRotationalAxis option to 1. When this option is set to 1, the rotationalAxis does not need to be specified.

Rotational Axis Polarity

When the rotationalAxisPolarity parameter is set to -1, the polarity of the rotational axis is reversed so that it rotates in the opposite direction throughout the path interpolation. In this configuration, the rotational axis rotates in the clockwise direction as its position increases in the positive direction. When the rotationalAxisPolarity parameter is set to the default value of 0 or when it is set to 1, the rotational axis rotates in the counterclockwise direction as its position increases in the positive direction.