A velocity transformation method for the nonlinear dynamic simulation of railroad vehicle systems

The solution of the constrained multibody system equations of motion using the generalized coordinate partitioning method requires the identification of the dependent and independent coordinates. Using this approach, only the independent accelerations are integrated forward in time in order to determine the independent coordinates and velocities. Dependent coordinates are determined by solving the nonlinear constraint equations at the position level. If the constraint equations are highly nonlinear, numerical difficulties can be encountered or more Newton–Raphson iterations may be required in order to achieve convergence for the dependent variables. In this paper, a velocity transformation method is proposed for railroad vehicle systems in order to deal with the nonlinearity of the constraint equations when the vehicles negotiate curved tracks. In this formulation, two different sets of coordinates are simultaneously used. The first set is the absolute Cartesian coordinates which are widely used in general multibody system computer formulations. These coordinates lead to a simple form of the equations of motion which has a sparse matrix structure. The second set is the trajectory coordinates which are widely used in specialized railroad vehicle system formulations. The trajectory coordinates can be used to obtain simple formulations of the specified motion trajectory constraint equations in the case of railroad vehicle systems. While the equations of motion are formulated in terms of the absolute Cartesian coordinates, the trajectory accelerations are the ones which are integrated forward in time. The problems associated with the higher degree of differentiability required when the trajectory coordinates are used are discussed. Numerical examples are presented in order to examine the performance of the hybrid coordinate formulation proposed in this paper in the analysis of multibody railroad vehicle systems.     

Complicated nonlinear responses of a simply supported FGM rectangular plate under combined parametric and external excitations

In this paper, we use the asymptotic perturbation method based on the Fourier expansion and the temporal rescaling to investigate the nonlinear oscillations and chaotic dynamics of a simply supported rectangular plate made of functionally graded materials (FGMs) subjected to a through-thickness temperature field together with parametric and external excitations. Material properties are assumed to be temperature-dependent. Based on the Reddy’s third-order plate theory, the governing equations of motion for the plate are derived using the Hamilton’s principle. The Galerkin procedure is employed to obtain a two-degree-of-freedom nonlinear system including the quadratic and cubic nonlinear terms. The resonant case considered here is 1:2 internal resonance, principal parametric resonance-1/2 subharmonic resonance. Based on the averaged equation in polar coordinate form, the stability of steady state solutions is analyzed. The phase portrait, waveform and Poincaré map are used to analyze the periodic and chaotic motions of the FGM rectangular plate. It is found that the FGM rectangular plate exhibits the chaotic motions under certain circumstances. It is seen that the nonlinear dynamic responses of the FGM rectangular plate are more sensitive to transverse excitation. The excitation force can be used as a controlling factor which can change the response of the FGM rectangular plate from periodic motion to the chaotic motion.     

Numerical Continuation of Solutions and Bifurcation Analysis in Multibody Systems Applied to Motorcycle Dynamics

It is shown how the equations of motion for a multibody system can be generated in a symbolic form and the resulting equations can be used in a program for the analysis of nonlinear dynamical systems. Stationary and periodic solutions are continued when a parameter is allowed to vary and bifurcations are found. The variational or linearized equations and derivatives with respect to parameters are also provided to the analysis program, which enhances the efficiency and accuracy of the calculations. The analysis procedure is firstly applied to a rotating orthogonal double pendulum, which serves as a test for the correctness of the implementation and the viability of the approach. Then, the procedure is used for the analysis of the dynamics of a motorcycle. For running straight ahead, the nominal solution undergoes Hopf bifurcations if the forward velocity is varied, which lead to periodic wobble and weave motions. For stationary cornering, wobble instabilities are found at much lower speeds, while the maximal speed is limited by the saturation of the tyre forces.     

Steady-state analysis of multibody systems with reference to vehicle dynamics

This paper presents a systematic methodology and formulation for determining the steady-state response of multibody systems. The equations of motion for a general multibody system are described in terms of a set of relative joint accelerations. Then, the differential equations of motion are converted to a set of algebraic equations for the steady-state response. These equations are derived based upon a set of conditions that must exist for the steady state. The application of this formulation in determining the steady-state response of a vehicle moving in a circular path is shown. The multibody model of the vehicle for two- or four-wheel steering is presented. The results of the steady-state simulation are compared with those obtained from a transient dynamic analysis.     

多体空气动力学研究进展

多体飞行器普遍存在于航空航天、空天和武器领域中, 主要有以下三大类型: (1) 多个飞行器相互不接触的近距离飞行; (2) 多体飞行器相互接触或组合飞行; (3) 多体飞行器回收或解锁分离过程的相对运动. 多体飞行器在飞行、回收或分离过程中存在相互的流场干扰或作用, 使多体飞行器具有不同于孤立体飞行器的流动物理或特征, 特别是在超声速、高超声速的多体流动中, 多体间存在多重激波反射、衍射以及激波与旋涡、激波与边界层相互干扰或作用, 这些复杂流动能显著地改变多体飞行器的空气动力学特性. 作者引入“多体空气动力学”概念对多体飞行器这一类问题进行概括和总结, 并阐述其基本内涵、应用场景和研究方法/手段及典型多体构型的超声速/高超声速流动结构和特征.      

Optimization of Vehicle Suspension Systems for Improved Comfort of Road Vehicles Using Flexible Multibody Dynamics

Methods that account for the flexibility of multibody systems extend the range of applications to areas such as flexible robots, precision machinery, vehicle dynamics or space satellites. The method proposed here for flexible multibody models allows for the representation of complex-shaped bodies using general finite-element discretizations which deform during the dynamic loading of the system, while the gross rigid body motion of these bodies is still captured using fixed-body coordinate frames. Components of the system for which the deformations are relatively unimportant are represented with rigid bodies. This method is applied to a road vehicle where flexibility plays an important role in its ride and handling dynamic behavior. Therefore, for the study of the limit behavior of the vehicles, the use of flexible multibody models is of high importance. The design process of these vehicles, very often based on intuition and experience, can be greatly enhanced through the use of generalized optimization techniques concurrently with multibody codes. The use of sparse matrix system solvers and modal superposition, to reduce the number of flexible coordinates, in a computer simulation, assures a fast and reliable analysis tool for the optimization process. The optimum design of the vehicle is achieved through the use of an optimization algorithm with finite-differencesensitivities, where the characteristics of the vehicle components are the design variables on which appropriate constraints are imposed. The ride optimization is achieved by finding the optimum of a ride index that results from a metric that accounts for the acceleration in several key points in the vehicle properly weighted in face of their importance for the comfort of the occupant. Simulations with different road profiles are performed for different speeds to account for diverse ride situations. The results are presented and discussed in view of the different methods usedwith emphasis on models and algorithms.     

Nonlinear nonplanar dynamics of a parametrically excited inextensional elastic beam

The nonlinear dynamics of a clamped-clamped/sliding inextensional elastic beam subject to a harmonic axial load is investigated. The Galerkin method is used on the coupled bending-bending-torsional nonlinear equations with inertial and geometric nonlinearities and the resulting two second order ordinary differential equations are studied by the method of multiple time seales and by direct numerical integration. The amplitude equations are analyzed for steady and Hopf bifurcations. Depending on the amplitude of excitation, the damping and the ratio of principal flexural rigidities, various qualitatively distinct frequency response diagrams are uncovered and limit cycles and chaotic motions are found. In the truncated two-degree-of-freedom system the transition from periodic to chaotic amplitude-modulated motions is via the process of torus doubling and subsequent destruction of the torus.     

A feedback linearization design for the control of vehicle’s lateral dynamics

In this paper, the feedback linearization scheme is applied to the control of vehicle’s lateral dynamics. Based on the assumption of constant driving speed, a second-order nonlinear lateral dynamical model is adopted for controller design. It was observed in (Liaw, D.C., Chung, W.-C. in 2006 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, 2006) that the saddle-node bifurcation would appear in vehicle dynamics with respect to the variation of the front wheel steering angle, which might result in spin and/or system instability. The vehicle dynamics at the saddle node bifurcation point is derived and then decomposed as an affine nominal model plus the remaining term of the overall system dynamics. Feedback linearization scheme is employed to construct the stabilizing control laws for the nominal model. The stability of the overall vehicle dynamics at the saddle-node bifurcation is then guaranteed by applying Lyapunov stability criteria. Since the remaining term of the vehicle dynamics contains the steering control input, which might change system equilibrium except the designed one. Parametric analysis of system equilibrium for an example vehicle model is also obtained to classify the regime of control gains for potential behavior of vehicle’s dynamical behavior.     

刚柔耦合约束多体系统的动力分析

本文提出了描述柔性多体系统的牵连坐标系统。该系统由惯性参考系,牵连坐标系,物体坐标系及单元坐标系组成,实现了对刚体平动,刚体转动及弹性运动的连续分解,最大限度地消除了由于刚体大角度转动导致的非线性特性。以有限元法为基础,应用拉格朗日方程建立了在该坐标下的刚柔耦合约束多体系统的动力学控制方程。该方程具有耦合程度小、易于推导、编程及求解等优点,为大规模约束多体系统的动力分析提供了新的途径。本文还讨论了平面铰链约束的约束形式及约束方程,最后给出了一个典型多体系统的数值算例。     

Substructured molecular dynamics using multibody dynamics algorithms

This paper reports a new research effort aimed at using efficient multibody dynamics methods to simulate coarse-grained molecular systems. Various molecular systems are studied and the results of nanosecond-long simulations are analyzed to validate the method. The systems studied include bulk water, alkane chains, alanine dipeptide and carboxyl terminal fragments of calmodulin, ribosomal L7/L12 and rhodopsin proteins. The stability and validity of the simulations are studied through conservation of energy, thermodynamics properties and conformational analysis. In these simulations, a speed up of an order of magnitude is realized for conservative error bounds with a fixed timestep integration scheme. A discussion is presented on the open-source software developed to facilitate future research using multibody dynamics with molecular dynamics.     

A Nonlinear Temporal Headway Model of Traffic Dynamics

In order to describe the dynamics of a group of road vehicles travelling in a single lane, car-following models attempt to mimic the interactions between individual vehicles where the behaviour of each vehicle is dependent upon the motion of the vehicle immediately ahead. In this paper we investigate a modified car-following model which features a new nonlinear term which attempts to adjust the inter-vehicle spacing to a certain desired value. In contrast to our earlier work, a desired time separation between vehicles is used rather than simply being a constant desired distance. In addition, we extend our previous work to include a non-zero driver vehicle reaction time, thus producing a more realistic mathematical model of congested road traffic. Numerical solution of the resulting coupled system of nonlinear delay differential equations is used to analyse the stability of the equilibrium solution to a periodic perturbation. For certain parameter values the post-transient response is a chaotic (non-periodic) oscillations consisting of a broad spectrum of frequency components. Such chaotic motion leads to highly complex dynamical behaviour which is inherently unpredictable. The model is analysed over a range of parameter values and, in each case, the nature of the response is indicated. In the case of a chaotic solution, the degree of chaos is estimated.     

The phase dynamics method with applications to the Swift-Hohenberg equation

The phase dynamics method has been used to understand in a heuristic way the stability of periodic patterns and the dynamics of slow relaxation to periodic patterns. We attempt to give a rigorous mathematical foundation of the phase dynamics method through some simple model equations.     

Stability and Oscillations in a Time-Delayed Vehicle System with Driver Control

In this paper, linear stability and chaotic motion of a time-delayednonlinear vehicle system are studied. The stability is determined bycomputing the spectrum associated with a system of linear retardedfunctional differential equations, which reveals that a loss ofstability occurs following a Hopf bifurcation. Beyond the critical valuefor linear stability, the system exhibits limit cycle motions.Subharmonic, quasi-periodic and chaotic motions are observed for asystem excited by a periodic disturbance.     

Instability in gravity-driven flow over uneven permeable surfaces

We develop a theoretical model for inclined free-surface flow over a porous surface exhibiting periodic undulations. The effect of bottom permeability is incorporated by imposing a slip condition that accounts for the nonplanar geometry of the fluid–porous medium interface. Under the assumption of shallow flow, equations of motion accounting for inertial effects are obtained by retaining in the Navier-Stokes equations terms that are up to second-order with respect to a small shallowness parameter. The explicit dependence on the cross-stream coordinate is eliminated from these equations by means of a weighted residual procedure. A linear stability analysis of the steady flow is performed in connection with Floquet–Bloch theory. The results predict that bottom permeability has a destabilizing influence on the flow. A physical explanation has been proposed which involves examining how permeability affects the steady-state flow. Conclusions are drawn regarding the combined effect of the surface tension of the fluid and the parameters describing the bottom surface including permeability, inclination and the amplitude and wavelength of the undulations that generate the bottom topography. A numerical scheme for solving the fully nonlinear governing equations is also outlined. The instability of particular steady flows is determined by conducting nonlinear simulations of the temporal evolution of the flow and comparisons are made with the predictions from the linear analysis. Comparisons with existing experimental data are also included.     

On the dynamics of rings rotating with variable spin speed

This work investigates nonlinear dynamic response of circular rings rotating with spin speed which involves small fluctuations from a constant average value. First, Hamilton's principle is applied and the equations of motion are expressed in terms of a single time coordinate, representing the amplitude of an in-plane bending mode. For nonresonant excitation or for slowly rotating rings, a complete analysis is presented by employing phase plane methodologies. For rapidly rotating rings, periodic spin speed variations give rise to terms leading to parametric excitation. In this case, the vibrations that occur under principal parametric resonance are analyzed by applying the method of multiple scales. The resulting modulation equations possess combinations of trivial and nontrivial constant steady state solutions. The existence and stability properties of these motions are first analyzed in detail. Also, analysis of the undamped slow-flow equations provides a global picture for the possible motions of the ring. In all cases, the analytical predictions are verified and complemented by numerical results. In addition to periodic response, these results reveal the existence of unbounded as well as transient chaotic response of the rotating ring.     

Comparative study on multibody vehicle dynamics models based on subsystem synthesis method using Cartesian and joint coordinates

The subsystem synthesis method has been developed in order to improve computational efficiency for a multibody vehicle dynamics model. Using the subsystem synthesis method, equations of motion of the base body and each subsystem can be solved separately. In the subsystem synthesis method, various coordinate systems can be used and various integration methods can be applied in each subsystem, as long as the effective mass matrix and the effective force vector are properly produced. In this paper, comparative study has been carried out for the subsystem synthesis method with Cartesian coordinates and with joint relative coordinates. Two different integration methods such as an explicit integrator and an explicit implicit integrator are employed. In order to see the accuracy and computational efficiency from the different models based on the different coordinate systems and different integration methods, a rough terrain run simulations has been carried out with a 6 × 6 off-road multibody vehicle model.     

树形多体系统非线性动力学的数值分析方法

研究了树形多体系统大线性动力学分析的数值方法,利用多体系统的正则方程及其线性化程,给出了多体系统Ｌｙａｐｕｎｏｖ指数和Ｐｏｉｎｃａｒｅ映射的计算方法,该算法具有较好的计算精度和通用性,既适用于说明该算法的有效性,并对该系统的动力学行为进行分析,最后用算例说明该算法的有效性,并对该系统的动力学特征（周期解、准周期解、分岔、混沌以及通往混沌的道路等）进行了分析。     

On the numerical solution of tracked vehicle dynamic equations

In this investigation, the solution of the nonlinear dynamic equations of the multibody tracked vehicle systems are obtained using different procedures. In the first technique, which is based on the augmented formulation that employes the absolute Cartesian coordinates and Lagrange multipliers, the generalized coordinate partitioning of the constraint Jacobian matrix is used to determine the independent coordinates and the associated independent differential equations. An iterative Newton-Raphson algorithm is used to solve the nonlinear constraint equations for the dependent variables. The numerical problems encountered when one set of independent coordinates is used during the simulation of large scale tracked vehicle systems are demonstrated and their relationship to the track dynamics is discussed. The second approach employed in this investigation is the velocity transformation technique. One of the versions of this technique is discussed in this paper and the numerical problems that arise from the use of inconsistent system of kinematic equations are reported. In the velocity transformation technique, the tracked vehicle system is assumed to consist of two kinematically decoupled subsystems; the first subsystem consists of the chassis, the rollers, the sprocket and the idler, while the second subsystem consists of the track which is represented as a closed kinematic chain that consists of rigid links connected by revolute joints. It is demonstrated that the use of one set of recursive equations leads to numerical difficulties because of the change in the track configuration. Singular configurations can be avoided by repeated changes in the recursive equations. The sensitivity of the predictor-corrector multistep numerical integration schemes to the method of formulating the state equations is demonstrated. The numerical results presented in this investigation are obtained using a planner tracked vehicle model that consists of fifty four rigid bodies.     

多体系统动力学动态最优化设计与灵敏度分析

基于多体系统的动态最优化设计过程包括传统的多体系统仿真分析、系统设计灵敏度分析、 系统最优化设计等过程, 针对多体系统运动学、用二阶常微分方程和微分代数方程描述 的动力学,基于含设计参数的通用数学模型及通用的积分型目标函数,采用高效的系统灵 敏度分析伴随变量方法及易于实施的惩罚函数最优设计方法,建立了多体系统最优设计数学 模型和算法. 通过双摆系统、曲柄-滑块系统、弹簧/阻尼器-滑块系统3个算例对上述 算法的有效性进行了验证.     

Rotationally symmetric spontaneous swirling in MHD flows

The stability of steady axisymmetricMHD flows of an inviscid, incompressible, perfectly conducting fluid with respect to swirling—perturbations of the azimuthal components of the velocity field—is studied in a linear approximation. It is shown that for flows similar to a magnetohydrodynamic Hill-Shafranov vortex, the problem reduces to a one-dimensional problem on a closed streamline of the unperturbed flow (the arc length of the streamline is the spatial coordinate). A spectral boundary-value eigenvalue problem is formulated for a system of two ordinary differential equations with periodic coefficients and periodic boundary conditions. Sufficient conditions under which swirling is impossible are obtained. Numerical solution of the characteristic equation shows that, under certain conditions, for each streamline there is a real eigenvalue that yields monotonic exponential growth of the initial perturbations. Lavrent’ev Institute of Hydrodynamics, Siberian Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk 630090. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 41, No. 5, pp. 120–129, September–October, 2000.