Using Linkage to Design a 6 Bar Linkage Hinge

This tutorial goes over using the great freeware software tool Linkage to design a 6 bar linkage concealed hinge for an access shaft cover.

The Linkage software is available from David Rector's blog:

[rectorsquid]

Wow, you did a better job creating tutorials for my software than I ever did. Nice job.

[ssconeson]

OMG this was so helpful. Didn't know this tool existed but exactly what I needed. Clear and helpful instructions!!

[spikeoac]

This was an extremely succinct and well-done video. I love how you explained the exact problem you were trying to solve and showed the complete design process. Please continue to make videos.

[davidswanson]

This is exactly what I wished I could find. Instead I went brute force to solve my goal. I was making a Murphy bed. I needed the bed to rest at 24” (the height most beds rest at), but simply pivoting the bed up would run it into the low ceiling. I also wanted the head of the bed to be right up against the inner wall (most Murphy beds leave a gap where your pillow or phone could slip down). Furthermore, I wanted the pivot movement to not force the bed to rub along the wall (so I needed everything to pull away from the wall during the pivot). 4-bar linkage was the solution, and I had to drill a hundred holes into scrap boards and planks, to mock up a full scale test. I’d try a configuration, and then change the pivot points. I could not intuit the solution, so I just tried new pivot configurations till I got what I wanted. It took two days. This would’ve been awesome.

[AlexK-vwpo]

Brilliant video, I have an almost identical problem. Downloaded Linkage ages ago but haven't taken the time to familiarise. This has got me going straight on track.

[samj]

Cannot thank you enough. Clear language, sweet n short. Thumbs up.

[adambergendorff]

This really was a fantastic video, with back ground on what you needed to solve, well done!

[ferriswhitehouse]

amazing tutorial, first time i was able to follow along and actually make something. Thank you!

[BrownMInc]

I'm so glad you're bringing light to this great software! Ive always taken the trial and error approach but would love to learn a more rigorous way to get a ballpark accurate design. What I mean is that you had a general idea of where the points needed to be, maybe from understanding another design or some other avenue. I'd like to learn more about finding those points

[rodin-]

Yay! A neat video explaining how to use 'Linkage'! I downloaded it a while back but reverted back to using blocks/layout in solidworks because I couldn't quite suss out 'Linkage'. But thanks to this video, I'm going to give it another try 😊

[andrew-]

I need an over center lockout under a trap door. Installing the software now.

[wqwwqwqqpoppopoo]

this sort of program is exactly what I was looking for thank you for sharing this!

[bartosslajos]

Great video and great software for planning a mechanism!

[johnsgarden]

Outstanding video! It would be great to have more of your videos showing simple mechanisms, just to get people going and quickly up to speed. For example you said the piston in a cylinder is simple, please can you model that both in the side view and in the front view (so seperate linkage files)?

[clxudzYT]

What an amazing tutorial man! Keep up the good work! <3

[DarthBiomech]

Thank you! I was already despairing I'll need to buy Autodesk Inventor to be able to design such systems.

[Alluvian]

Would be really nice if you could do constraints and dimensions instead of having to math out all the coordinates for the anchors. Big change to the software to do that of course.

[lohikarhu]

Can we use metric dimensions?
It's just brutal hearing the constant need to convert fractions into 3 significant digits...
That aside, it's cool that you can use simply drawing to roughly place points of interest, and then parametrically do precise placement...

[lohikarhu]

Well, drat!
Or "snap!"
Windows only... Looked good while my ignorance lasted...
Still, good stuff.

[Lulu-fllk]

Hi, I want to ask.
Is this software can simulation 3D with 6 or more bar linkage?

Thank you.