Adaptive timestep control for the contact-stabilized Newmark method

The aim of this paper is to devise an adaptive timestep control in the contact-stabilized Newmark method (ContacX) for dynamical contact problems between two viscoelastic bodies in the framework of Signorini’s condition. In order to construct a comparative scheme of higher order accuracy, we extend extrapolation techniques. This approach demands a subtle theoretical investigation of an asymptotic error expansion of the contact-stabilized Newmark scheme. On the basis of theoretical insight and numerical observations, we suggest an error estimator and a timestep selection which also cover the presence of contact. Finally, we give a numerical example.