Regularized numerical integration of multibody dynamics with the generalized method

This paper discusses the consistent regularization property of the generalized α method when applied as an integrator to an initial value high index and singular differential-algebraic equation model of a multibody system. The regularization comes from within the discretization itself and the discretization remains consistent over the range of values the regularization parameter may take. The regularization involves increase of the smallest singular values of the ill-conditioned Jacobian of the discretization and is different from Baumgarte and similar techniques which tend to be inconsistent for poor choice of regularization parameter. This regularization also helps where pre-conditioning the Jacobian by scaling is of limited effect, for example, when the scleronomic constraints contain multiple closed loops or singular configuration or when high index path constraints are present. The feed-forward control in Kane’s equation models is additionally considered in the numerical examples to illustrate the effect of regularization. The discretization presented in this work is adopted to the first order DAE system (unlike the original method which is intended for second order systems) for its A-stability and same order of accuracy for positions and velocities.     

A discrete time version for models of population dynamics in the presence of an infection

We present a set of difference equations which represents the discrete counterpart of a large class of continuous model concerning the dynamics of an infection in an organism or in a host population. The limiting behavior of the discrete model is studied and a threshold parameter playing the role of the basic reproduction number is derived.     

On orthogonal polynomial approximation with the dimensional expanding technique for precise time integration in transient analysis

We use four orthogonal polynomial series, Legendre, Chebyshev, Hermite and Laguerre series, to approximate the non-homogeneous term for the precise time integration and incorporate them with the dimensional expanding technique. They are applied to various structures subjected to transient dynamic loading together with Fourier and Taylor approximation proposed in previous works. Numerical examples show that all six methods are efficient and have reasonable precision. In particular, Legendre approximation has much higher precision and better convergence; Chebyshev approximation is also good, but only slightly inferior to Legendre approximation. The other four approximation methods usually produce results with errors hundreds of thousands of times larger. Hermite and Laguerre approximation may be useful for some special non-homogeneous terms, but do not work sufficiently well in our numerical examples. Other contributions of this paper include, a Dynamic Programming scheme for computing series coefficients, a general formula to find the assistant matrix for any polynomial series.     

A numerical method for the dynamics and stability of spiral waves

In this paper we propose a new method of investigating the change of dynamics in reaction-diffusion equations, which is based on approximating the Euclidian norm of state variables along with the introduction of phase space. Our method is simple in implementation and can be applied to study the dynamics of multiple spirals. The method is extended to study the stability of spiral waves by developing an algorithm which is applied to circular and meandering motions.     

Unobserved Component models applied to the assessment of wear in railway points: A case study

Railways are experiencing a fundamental transformation. The introduction of high speed networks and the increased traffic levels on suburban routes and freight lines require new technologies for both railway infrastructure and trains, all of which must be subjected to rigorous quality control before and during operation and must be supported with effective maintenance processes during their operating lives. Safety in railway infrastructure provision must be ensured by all the main components operating reliably all the time. From an economic, quality and safety point of view, points are probably one of the most critical infrastructure elements in railway transportation.     

Bridging the gap: From cellular automata to differential equation models for pedestrian dynamics

Cellular automata (CA) and ordinary differential equation (ODE) models compete for dominance in microscopic pedestrian dynamics. There are two major differences: movement in a CA is restricted to a grid and navigation is achieved by moving directly in the desired direction. Force based ODE models operate in continuous space and navigation is computed indirectly through the acceleration vector. We present the Optimal Steps Model and the Gradient Navigation Model, which produce trajectories similar to each other. Both are grid-free and free of oscillations, leading to the conclusion that the two major differences are also the two major weaknesses of the older models.     

A successive integration technique for the solution of the Duffing oscillator equation with damping and excitation

In this paper, a successive integration technique is suggested for solving the Duffing oscillator equation with damping and excitation. In the technique, one performs integrations from some initial values over a wider range. Some of them may even be divergent; however, some of them will give a convergent result such that the periodic condition of motion is satisfied. In fact, the convergent result represents a stable periodic solution for the motion. If a convergent result or a stable periodic solution is obtained, the stability test is passed. A harmonic balance method in conjunction with the successive integration technique (abbreviated as HBMSIT) is also suggested. In the method, the initial values are obtained from the harmonic balance method. Therefore, the HBMSIT belongs to the successive integration techniques. Many examples with calculated results are presented.     

A new approach to the flash technique for the remote sensing of layered materials

A radically new technique of frontal monitoring, the sliding tangent method, is proposed, which makes it possible to determine the instant when the temperature regime on the surface of the body under study becomes regularized. Together with the regression analysis of the time-temperature relation for the surface, represented as a time series, this method provides a handy way for remote measuring of the thermophysical properties of material bodies to a high accuracy. The method is particularly attractive for investigating objects in vacuum, at high pressures and temperatures, and in other hostile conditions. This technique is of primary importance when the back side of the object to be investigated is inaccessible. Furthermore, any change at the surface or the back of a body can be detected remotely and nondestructively. The time and geometrical limitations for the suggested method are indicated.Tomsk Polytechnic Institute, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 35, No. 3, pp. 393–400, May–June, 1999.     

Method of boundary integral equations as applied to the numerical solution of the three-dimensional Dirichlet problem for the laplace equation in a piecewise homogeneous medium

A Dirichlet problem is considered in a three-dimensional domain filled with a piecewise homogeneous medium. The uniqueness of its solution is proved. A system of Fredholm boundary integral equations of the second kind is constructed using the method of surface potentials, and a system of boundary integral equations of the first kind is derived directly from Green’s identity. A technique for the numerical solution of integral equations is proposed, and results of numerical experiments are presented.     

A pseudo‐spectral method that uses an overlapping multidomain technique for the numerical solution of sine‐Gordon equation in one and two spatial dimensions

In this article, we study an explicit scheme for the solution of sine‐Gordon equation when the space discretization is carried out by an overlapping multidomain pseudo‐spectral technique. By using differentiation matrices, the equation is reduced to a nonlinear system of ordinary differential equations in time that can be discretized with the explicit fourth‐order Runge–Kutta method. To achieve approximation with high accuracy in large domains, the number of space grid points must be large enough. This yields very large and full matrices in the pseudo‐spectral method that causes large memory requirements. The domain decomposition approach provides sparsity in the matrices obtained after the discretization, and this property reduces storage for large matrices and provides economical ways of performing matrix–vector multiplications. Therefore, we propose a multidomain pseudo‐spectral method for the numerical simulation of the sine‐Gordon equation in large domains. Test examples are given to demonstrate the accuracy and capability of the proposed method. Numerical experiments show that the multidomain scheme has an excellent long‐time numerical behavior for the sine‐Gordon equation in one and two dimensions. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.