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Dynamics of multibody systems is of great importance in the fields of robotics, biomechanics, spacecraft control, road and rail vehicle design, and dynamics of machinery. Many research problems have been solved and a considerable number of computer codes based on multibody formalisms is now available. With the present book it is intended to collect software systems for multibody system dynamics which are well established and have found acceptance in the users community. The Handbook will aid the reader in selecting the software system which is most appropriate to his needs. Altogether 17 research groups contributed to the Handbook. A compact summary of important capabilities of these software systems is presented in tabular form. All authors dealt with two typical test examples, a planar mechanism and a spatial robot. Thus, it is very easy to compare the results and to identify more clearly the advantages of one or the other formalism.

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Overview.- General remarks.- Tables of information.- Test Examples.- Descriptions of Codes.- NUBEMM - Theory and application of the MBS program.- SYM - Program package for computer-aided generation of optimal symbolic models of robot manipulators.- CAMS - A graphical interactive system for computer simulation and design of multibody systems.- AUTOLEV - A new approach to multibody dynamics.- UCIN-DYNOCOMBS - Software for the dynamic analysis of constrained multibody systems.- SPACAR - Computer program for dynamic analysis of flexible spatial mechanisms and manipulators.- NBOD & DISCOS - Dynamic interaction simulation of controls and structure.- DADS - Dynamic Analysis and Design System.- NEWEUL - Software for the generation of symbolical equations of motion.- MEDYNA - An interactive analysis and design program for geometrically linear and flexible multibody systems.- AUTODYN & ROBOTRAN - Computer programmes.- SIMPACK - A computer program for simulations of large-motion multibody systems.- COMPAMM - A simple and efficient code for kinematic and dynamic numerical simulation of 3-D multibody systems with realistic graphics.- DYMAC & DYSPAM - Programs for the dynamic analysis and simulation of planar mechanisms & multibody systems.- MESA VERDE - A general-purpose program package for symbolical dynamics simulations of multibody systems.- ADAMS - Multibody system analysis software.- PLEXUS - Software for the numerical analysis of the dynamical behavior of rigid and flexible mechanisms.- Contributors and Distributors.

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