The global analysis of higher order nonlinear dynamical systems and the application of cell-to-cell mapping method

In this paper, the general characteristics and the topological consideration of the global behaviors of higher order nonlinear dynamical systems and the characteristics of the application of cell-to-cell mapping method in this analysis are expounded. Specifically, the global analysis of a system of two weakly coupled van der Pol oscillators using cell-to-cell mapping method is presented.The analysis shows that for this system, there exist two stable limit cycles in 4-dimensional state space, and the whole 4-dimensional state space is divided into two almost equal parts which are, respectively, the two asymototically stable domains of attraction of the two periodic motions of the two stable limit cycles. The validities of these conclusions about the global behaviors are also verified by direct long term numerical integration. Thus, it can be seen that the cell-to-cell mapping method for global analysis of fourth order nonlinear dynamical systems is quite effective.     

On the global dynamics of path-following control of automated passenger vehicles

The nonlinear dynamics of the path-following control of passenger cars is analyzed in this paper. The effect of specific modeling aspects, such as tire deformation, steering dynamics, feedback delay and controller saturation, is considered. Possible equilibrium points and singularities in the state space are uncovered and analyzed for different vehicle model and controller designs. The equilibrium of stable path following is then analyzed in greater detail: The domains of stabilizing control gains are presented in stability charts and the basin of attraction of the equilibrium along the stable domain is approximated with the help of numerical continuation. Unsafe zones of control gains are highlighted, where the stable equilibrium is surrounded by low-amplitude unstable limit cycles. Finally, it is shown how specific modifications of the control law can remove unwanted equilibrium points and increase the basin of attraction of stable path following, resulting in safer and more reliable control of the vehicle.

     

Influence of Initial Conditions on the Postcritical Behavior of a Nonlinear Aeroelastic System

The behavior of a nonlinear, non-Hamiltonian system in the postcritical (flutter) domain is studied with special attention to the influence of initial conditions on the properties of attractors situated at a certain point of the control parameter space. As a prototype system, an elastic panel is considered that is subjected to a combination of supersonic gas flow and quasistatic loading in the middle surface. A two natural modes approximation, resulting in a four-dimensional phase space and several control parameters is considered in detail. For two fixed points in the control parameter space, several plane sections of the four-dimensional space of initial conditions are presented and the asymptotic behavior of the final stationary responses are identified. Amongst the latter there are stable periodic orbits, both symmetric and asymmetric with respect to the origin, as well as chaotic attractors. The mosaic structure of the attraction basins is observed. In particular, it is shown that even for neighboring initial conditions can result in distinctly different nonstationary responses asymptotically approach quite different types of attractors. A number of closely neighboring periodic attractors are observed, separated by Hopf bifurcations. Periodic attractors also are observed under special initial conditions in the domains where chaotic behavior is usually expected.     

Evolution of Limit Cycles in the Stability Domain of a Double Pendulum under a Variable Follower Force

It is shown that stable and unstable limit cycles are born at a certain value of the follower force. As the absolute value of the force increases, the cycles move with different velocities in opposite directions. The unstable limit cycle moves toward the origin in the four-dimensional phase space. At a certain value of the follower force, this cycle gets at the origin, disturbing its stability as a singular point of the dynamic system. If the absolute value of the follower force decreases, then death of both cycles is possible. In this case, the attraction domain of the origin becomes infinite     

Evolution of Domains of Attraction of a Forced Beam with Two-Mode Interaction

When a dissipative dynamical system has multiple attractors, it is a task to determine and recognize the global domain of attraction of each attractor. In this paper we study the global behavior of a forced hinged-clamped beam with two-mode interaction. The equation of motion of the beam is reduced to four first-order autonomous ordinary differential equations. The system has an internal resonance condition of 2 31, where 1 and 2 denote natural frequencies of the first and second modes, respectively. When the excitation frequency is near 1, the system can have three equilibrium solutions, among which two are asymptotically stable and one is unstable. We examine how the domains of attraction of two stable equilibrium solutions evolve as the forcing frequency is varied across jump points. By using a special plane which contains all equilibrium points, called the principal plane, the global domains of attraction can be discussed more effectively. Results show that knowledge of this evolution helps us better understand the jump phenomenon.     

Generation of hysteresis cycles with two and four jumps in a shape memory oscillator

A numerical investigation of the generation of hysteresis cycles with two and four jumps in a shape memory oscillator is presented. The fast subsystem is examined using local stability and bifurcations. When the upper and lower attractors disappear, the fast subsystem can be stable or bi-stable. This leads to a classification of the bifurcation behaviors of the fast subsystem, i.e., the stable case and the bi-stable case, which are associated with different parameter conditions. For the stable case, the hysteresis cycles with two and four jumps are obtained by properly modulating the slow external forcing, and the associated dynamical mechanisms are analyzed. While for the bi-stable case, the transition mechanisms underlying the appearance of hysteresis cycles with two and four jumps are revealed by computing attraction domains of the attractors.     

Two-parameter bifurcation analysis of limit cycles of a simplified railway wheelset model

The effect of the nonlinear terms on bifurcation behaviors of limit cycles of a simplified railway wheelset model is investigated. At first, the stable equilibrium state loses its stability via a Hopf bifurcation. The bifurcation curve is divided into a supercritical branch and a subcritical one by a generalized Hopf point, which plays a key role in determining the occurrence of flange contact and derailment of high-speed railway vehicles, and the occurrence of this critical situation is an important decision-making criteria for design parameters. Secondly, bifurcations of limit cycles are discussed by comparing the bifurcation behavior of cycles for two different nonlinear parameters. Unlike local Hopf bifurcation analysis based on a single bifurcation parameter in most papers, global bifurcation analysis of limit cycles based on two bifurcation parameters is investigated, simultaneously. It is shown that changing nonlinear parameter terms can affect bifurcation types of cycles and division of parameter domains. In particular, near the branch points of cycles, two symmetrical limit cycles are created by a pitchfork bifurcation and then two symmetrical cycles both undergo a period-doubling bifurcation to form two stable period-two cycles. Around the resonant points, period orbits can make several turns, whose number of turns corresponds to the ratio of resonance. Thirdly, near the Neimark–Sacker bifurcation of cycles, a stable torus is created by a supercritical Neimark–Sacker bifurcation, which shows that the orbit of the model exhibits modulated oscillations with two frequencies near the limit cycle. These results demonstrate that nonlinear parameter terms can produce very complex global bifurcation phenomena and make obvious effects on possible hunting motions even though a simple railway wheelset model is concerned.

     

Phase space structure of spinning disks

Using a Hamiltonian formalism and a sequence of canonical transformations, we show that the ordinary differential equations associated with the forced oscillations of rotating circular disks admit the first integral of motion. This reduces the phase space dimension of the governing equations from five to three. The phase space flows of the reduced system are then visualized using Poincaré maps. Our results show that single mode oscillations of rotating disks are subject to chaotic behavior through the emergence of higher-order resonant islands that surround fundamental periodic cycles. We extend our new formalism to imperfect disks and construct adiabatic invariants near to and far from resonances. For low-speed imperfect disks, we find a new kind of bifurcations of the phase space flows as the system parameters vary. We study the effect of structural damping using Hamilton's principle for non-conservative systems and reveal the existence of asymptotically stable limit cycles for the damped system near the 1:1 resonance. We show that a low-speed disk is eventually flattened due to damping effect.     

Global dynamics and integrity of a two-dof model of?a?parametrically excited cylindrical shell

In this paper the global dynamics and topological integrity of the basins of attraction of a parametrically excited cylindrical shell are investigated through a two-degree-of-freedom reduced order model. This model, as shown in previous authors?? works, is capable of describing qualitatively the complex nonlinear static and dynamic buckling behavior of the shell. The discretized model is obtained by employing Donnell shallow shell theory and the Galerkin method. The shell is subjected to an axial static pre-loading and then to a harmonic axial load. When the static load is between the buckling load and the minimum post-critical load, a three potential well is obtained. Under these circumstances the shell may exhibit pre- and post-buckling solutions confined to each of the potential wells as well as large cross-well motions. The aim of the paper is to analyze in a systematic way the bifurcation sequences arising from each of the three stable static solutions, obtaining in this way the parametric instability and escape boundaries. The global dynamics of the system is analyzed through the evolution of the various basins of attraction in the four-dimensional phase space. The concepts of safe basin and integrity measures quantifying its magnitude are used to obtain the erosion profile of the various solutions. A detailed parametric analysis shows how the basins of the various solutions interfere with each other and how this influences the integrity measures. Special attention is dedicated to the topological integrity of the various solutions confined to the pre-buckling well. This allows one to evaluate the safety and dynamic integrity of the mechanical system. Two characteristic cases, one associated with a sub-critical parametric bifurcation and another with a super-critical parametric bifurcation, are considered in the analysis.     

Additive Noise Destroys a Pitchfork Bifurcation

In the deterministic pitchfork bifurcation the dynamical behavior of the system changes as the parameter crosses the bifurcation point. The stable fixed point loses its stability. Two new stable fixed points appear. The respective domains of attraction of those two fixed points split the state space into two macroscopically distinct regions. It is shown here that this bifurcation of the dynamical behavior disappears as soon as additive white noise of arbitrarily small intensity is incorporated the model. The dynamical behavior of the disturbed system remains the same for all parameter values. In particular, the system has a (random) global attractor, and this attractor is a one-point set for all parameter values. For any parameter value all solutions converge to each other almost surely (uniformly in bounded sets). No splitting of the state space into distinct regions occurs, not even into random ones. This holds regardless of the intensity of the disturbance.     

An Alternative Approach to Study Bifurcation from a Limit Cycle in Periodically Perturbed Autonomous Systems

The goal of this paper is to present a new method to prove bifurcation of a branch of asymptotically stable periodic solutions of a T-periodically perturbed autonomous system from a T-periodic limit cycle of the autonomous unperturbed system. The method is based on a linear scaling of the state variables to convert, under suitable conditions, the singular Poincaré map (with two singularity conditions) associated to the perturbed autonomous system into an equivalent non-singular equation to which the classical implicit function theorem applies directly. As a result we obtain the existence of a unique branch of T-periodic solutions (usually found for bifurcations of co-dimension 2) as well as a relevant property of the spectrum of their derivatives. Finally, by a suitable representation formula of the classical Malkin bifurcation function, we show that our conditions are equivalent to the existence of a non-degenerate simple zero of the Malkin function. The novelty of the method is that it permits to solve the problem without explicit reduction of the dimension of the state space as it is usually done in the literature by the Lyapunov–Schmidt method.     

Random perturbations of nonlinear oscillators: Homogenization and large deviations

This paper considers two prototypical strongly nonlinear oscillators with weak dissipation and noise: a pendulum which is acted on by a small noisy torque and opposed by a friction; and the noisy Duffing-van der Pol oscillator. But over a long time the weak dissipative and noise effects can be significant. This paper develops asymptotic techniques based on averaging and large deviations to study the effects of weak noise on the escape from the domain of attraction of stable equilibrium points and limit cycles in phase-space.     

Limit cycles of a double pendulum subject to a follower force

It is shown that there is a magnitude of the follower force at which two limit cycles, stable and unstable, are born in the phase space of a double simple pendulum     

Dynamical analysis of the generalized Sprott C system with only two stable equilibria

A generalized Sprott C system with only two stable equilibria is investigated by detailed theoretical analysis as well as dynamic simulation, including some basic dynamical properties, Lyapunov exponent spectra, fractal dimension, bifurcations, and routes to chaos. In the parameter space where the equilibria of the system are both asymptotically stable, chaotic attractors coexist with period attractors and stable equilibria. Moreover, the existence of singularly degenerate heteroclinic cycles for a suitable choice of the parameters is investigated. Periodic solutions and chaotic attractors can be found when these cycles disappear.     

Bifurcation of limit cycles in piecewise-smooth systems with intersecting discontinuity surfaces

This paper deals with bifurcation of limit cycles for perturbed piecewise-smooth systems. Concentrating on the case in which the vector fields are defined in four domains and the discontinuity surfaces are codimension-2 manifolds in the phase space. We present a generalization of the Poincaré map and establish some novel criteria to create a new version of the Melnikov-like function. Naturally, this function is designed corresponding to a system trajectory that interacts with two different discontinuity surfaces. This provides an approach to prove the existence of special type of invariant manifolds enabling the reduction of dynamics of the full system to the two-dimensional surfaces of the invariant cones. It is shown that there exists a novel bifurcation concerning the existence of multiple invariant cones for such system. Further, our results are then used to control the persistence of limit cycles for two- and three-dimensional perturbed systems. The theoretical results of these examples are illustrated by numerical simulations.     

Global properties of a class of virus infection models with multitarget cells

In this paper, we propose a class of virus infection models with multitarget cells and study their global properties. We first study three models with specific forms of incidence rate function, then study a model with a more general nonlinear incidence rate. The basic model is a (2n+1)-dimensional nonlinear ODEs that describes the population dynamics of the virus, n classes of uninfected target cells, and n classes of infected target cells. Model with exposed state and model with saturated infection rate are also studied. For these models, Lyapunov functions are constructed to establish the global asymptotic stability of the uninfected and infected steady states of these models. We have proven that if the basic reproduction number is less than unity then the uninfected steady state is globally asymptotically stable, and if the basic reproduction number is greater than unity then the infected steady state is globally asymptotically stable. For the model with general nonlinear incidence rate, we construct suitable Lyapunov functions and establish the sufficient conditions for the global stability of the uninfected and infected steady states of this model.     

Codimension-two bifurcation analysis in two-dimensional Hindmarsh–Rose model

In this paper, we analyze the codimension-2 bifurcations of equilibria of a two-dimensional Hindmarsh–Rose model. By using the bifurcation methods and techniques, we give a rigorous mathematical analysis of Bautin bifurcation. The main result is that no more than two limit cycles can be bifurcated from the equilibrium via Hopf bifurcation; sufficient conditions for the existence of one or two limit cycles are obtained. This paper also shows that the model undergoes a Bogdanov–Takens bifurcation which includes a saddle-node bifurcation, an Andronov–Hopf bifurcation, and a homoclinic bifurcation. In some case, the globally asymptotical stability is discussed.     

A stability in the large investigation for a non-linear second order two-degree-of-freedom system with periodic excitation

An extension to an algorithm due to Simpson has been developed for the analysis of a non-linear second order two-degree-of-freedom system with external periodic excitation. The form of equations considered arises from the study of mechanical systems with a single concentrated weak non-linearity and the method assumes a solution made up of harmonic terms whose amplitudes vary slowly in time. The system considered is such that in the absence of external excitation, it possesses a stable equilibrium point and an unstable limit cycle arising from a sub-critical Hopf bifurcation. When forcing is applied, the stable equilibrium point may then be replaced by a stable periodic attractor, and the limit cycle by an unstable multi-periodic attractor. The method has been applied to the problem of locating these attractors, and if they exist, of finding the stable attractor's basin of attraction in terms of initial conditions. The method reduces the problem from a search in four-dimensional phase space to a search for a boundary in a plane defined by amplitudes a₁ and a₂ in the assumed form of the solution.The method was applied to three non-linear systems in which the non-linearity was due to either a linear spring with a small amount of cubic hardening or a linear spring with freeplay. Agreement was shown to be good in those cases where the non-linearity was weak. However, the method would not be expected to give such accurate results if the non-linear effect was more significant. This was illustrated for a case involving the freeplay non-linearity.     

The effects of time-dependent dissipation on the basins of attraction for the pendulum with oscillating support

We consider a pendulum with vertically oscillating support and time-dependent damping coefficient which varies until reaching a finite final value. Although it is the final value which determines which attractors eventually exist, the sizes of the corresponding basins of attraction are found to depend strongly on the full evolution of the dissipation. In particular, we investigate numerically how dissipation monotonically varying in time changes the sizes of the basins of attraction. It turns out that, in order to predict the behaviour of the system, it is essential to understand how the sizes of the basins of attraction for constant dissipation depend on the damping coefficient. For values of the parameters where the systems can be considered as a perturbation of the simple pendulum, which is integrable, we characterise analytically the conditions under which the attractors exist and study numerically how the sizes of their basins of attraction depend on the damping coefficient. Away from the perturbation regime, a numerical study of the attractors and the corresponding basins of attraction for different constant values of the damping coefficient produces a much more involved scenario: changing the magnitude of the dissipation causes some attractors to disappear either leaving no trace or producing new attractors by bifurcation, such as period doubling and saddle-node bifurcation. Finally, we pass to the case of an initially non-constant damping coefficient, both increasing and decreasing to some finite final value, and we numerically observe the resulting effects on the sizes of the basins of attraction: when the damping coefficient varies slowly from a finite initial value to a different final value, without changing the set of attractors, the slower the variation the closer the sizes of the basins of attraction are to those they have for constant damping coefficient fixed at the initial value. Furthermore, if during the variation of the damping coefficient attractors appear or disappear, remarkable additional phenomena may occur. For instance, it can happen that, in the limit of very large variation time, a fixed point asymptotically attracts the entire phase space, up to a zero-measure set, even though no attractor with such a property exists for any value of the damping coefficient between the extreme values.