Adaptive cable-driven parallel robots are a special subclass of cable-driven systems in\ud which the locations of the pulley blocks are modified as a function of the end-effector\ud pose to obtain optimal values of given performance indices within a target workspace.\ud Due to their augmented kinematic redundancy, such systems enable larger workspace\ud volume and higher performance compared to traditional designs featuring the same number\ud of cables. Previous studies have introduced a systematic method to optimize design\ud and trajectory planning of the moving pulley-blocks for a given performance index. In\ud this paper, we study the motions of the pulley blocks that optimize two performance indices\ud simultaneously: stiffness and dexterity. Specifically, we present a method to determine\ud the pulley blocks motions that guarantee ideal dexterity with the best feasible elastic stiffness,\ud as well as those that guarantee isotropic elastic stiffness with the best feasible dexterity.\ud We demonstrate the proposed approach on some practical cases of planar\ud adaptive cable-driven parallel robots

TQM is a set of management practices throughout the organisation, geared to ensure the organisation consistently meets or exceeds customer requirements. This research tries to investigate the most important barriers to successful TQM implementation in Iranian manufacturing organisations. The authors have studied samples of manufacturing organisations, comprising those that have invested on TQM after the end of March 2009 and were located in Iran. This descriptive and cross-sectional research is carried out via two questionnaires -general questionnaire for success of TQM principles and specific questionnaire for barriers to successful TQM implementation. The statistical population of this research consists of all managers of manufacturing organisations who implemented TQM in their organisations. Results showed that the main root causes of unsuccessful implementation of TQM were the lack of management commitment, resource problem and failure to use the right framework for TQM. In addition, there is a significant coincidence between the results of two questionnaires. Finally, regarding the findings of this research, we offer a relation between TQM principles and barriers to successful TQM implementation. Therefore, in order to reduce the barriers to successful TQM implementation, some suggestions were proposed.

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