An enhanced multi-term harmonic balance solution for nonlinear period-one dynamic motions in right-angle gear pairs

A nonlinear time-varying dynamic model for right-angle gear pair systems, considering both backlash and asymmetric mesh effects, is formulated. The mesh parameters that are characteristically time-varying and asymmetric include mesh stiffness, directional rotation radius and mesh damping. The period-one dynamic motions are obtained by solving the dimensionless equation of gear motion using an enhanced multi-term harmonic balance method (HBM) with a modified discrete Fourier Transform process and the numerical continuation method. The accuracy of the enhanced HBM solution is verified by comparison of its results to the more computational intensive, direct numerical integration calculations. Also, the Floquet theory is applied to determine the stability of the steady-state harmonic balance solutions. Finally, a set of parametric studies are performed to determine quantitatively the effects of the variation and asymmetry in mesh stiffness and directional rotation radius on the gear dynamic responses.     

Constrained parameter-splitting perturbation method for the improved solutions to the nonlinear vibrations of Euler–Bernoulli cantilevers

In this paper, a new method named constrained parameter-splitting perturbation method for improving the solutions obtained from the parameter-splitting perturbation method is proposed for solving the problems in some extremal cases, such as the strongly nonlinear vibration of an Euler–Bernoulli cantilever. The proposed method takes the advantages of both the perturbation method and the harmonic balance method. The idea is that the solution obtained by the parameter-splitting perturbation method is substituted into the equation of motion and then the accumulative error of the equation is minimized for determining the unknown splitting parameters under the constraints constructed under the frame of harmonic balance method. The forced vibration of an oscillator with cubic geometric nonlinearity and inertia nonlinearity and the forced vibration of a planar microcantilever beam with a lumped tip mass are studied as examples to reveal the efficacy of the proposed method. The inspection of the steady-state response including its stability is conducted by means of comparing the frequency-response curves obtained by the proposed method with those obtained by the numerical continuation method and harmonic balance method, respectively, to show the efficacy and the advantages of the proposed method. Meanwhile, the nonlinear ordering effect on the solutions of the proposed method is also studied by comparing the results obtained by using different nonlinear orderings in the systems. In the last, we found through convergence examinations that it is necessary to have corrections to the erroneous solution which are obtained by harmonic balance method and Floquet theory in stability analysis.

     

Limit cycle oscillations of rectangular cantilever wings containing cubic nonlinearity in an incompressible flow

Limit cycle oscillations (LCO) as well as nonlinear aeroelastic analysis of rectangular cantilever wings with a cubic nonlinearity are investigated. Aeroelastic equations of a rectangular cantilever wing with two degrees of freedom in an incompressible potential flow are presented in the time domain. The harmonic balance method is modified to calculate the LCO frequency and amplitude for rectangular wings. In order to verify the derived formulation, flutter boundaries are obtained via a linear analysis of the derived system of equations for five different cases and compared with experimental data. Satisfactory results are gained through this comparison. The problem of finding the LCO frequency and amplitude is solved via applying the two methods discussed for two different cases with hardening cubic nonlinearities. The results from first-, third- and fifth-order harmonic balance methods are compared with the results of an exact numerical solution. A close agreement is obtained between these harmonic balance methods and the exact numerical solution of the governing aeroelastic equations. Finally, the nonlinear aeroelastic analysis of a rectangular cantilever wing with a softening nonlinearity is studied.     

Parametric excitation in non-linear dynamics

Consider a one-mass system with two degrees of freedom, non-linearly coupled, with parametric excitation in one direction. Assuming the internal resonance 1:2 and parametric resonance 1:2 we derive conditions for stability of the trivial solution by using both the harmonic balance method and the normal form method of averaging. If the trivial solution becomes unstable, a stable periodic solution may emerge, there are also cases where the trivial solution is stable and co-exists with a stable periodic solution; if both the trivial solution and the periodic solution(s) are unstable, we find an attracting torus with large amplitudes by a Neimark-Sacker bifurcation. The results of the harmonic balance method and averaging are compared, as well as the results on the Neimark-Sacker bifurcation obtained by the numerical software package CONTENT and by averaging. In all cases we have good agreement.     

Influence of small harmonic terms on eigenvalues of monodromy matrix of piecewise-linear oscillators

In this paper we consider the problem which can appear at the determination of the dynamical stability of the responses of oscillators with discontinuous or steep derivative of the restoring characteristic obtained in the frequency domain. For that purpose, a simple one degree-of-freedom system with piecewise-linear force-displacement relationship subjected to a harmonic excitation is analysed. Stability of the periodic response obtained in the frequency domain by the incremental harmonic balance method is determined by using the Floquet-Liapounov theorem. Confirmation of the results obtained in the frequency domain is done by comparing with the results obtained in the time domain by the method of piecing the exact solutions. Determination of the dynamical stability can be made more reliable by using the proposed plot of maximum modulus of the eigenvalues of the monodromy matrix in dependence of non-dimensional frequency and the number of harmonics included in the supposed approximate solution.     

On the undamped free vibration of a mass interacting with a Hertzian contact stiffness

Three methods are used to determine the natural frequency of undamped free vibration of a mass interacting with a Hertzian contact stiffness. The exact value is determined using the first integral of motion. The harmonic balance method is used on a transformed equation for an approximate solution, and the multiple scales method is used on an approximate equation. The maximum initial displacement avoiding contact loss is also determined, and the corresponding exact natural frequency is also obtained analytically. The methods are evaluated by studying the free vibration of an elastic sphere on a flat rigid surface.     

INCREMENTAL HARMONIC BALANCE METHOD FOR AIRFOIL FLUTTER WITH MULTIPLE STRONG NONLINEARITIES

The incremental harmonic balance method was extended to analyze the flutter of systems with multiple structural strong nonlinearities. The strongly nonlinear cubic plunging and pitching stiffness terms were considered in the flutter equations of two-dimensional airfoil. First, the equations were transferred into matrix form, then the vibration process was divided into the persistent incremental processes of vibration moments. And the expression of their solutions could be obtained by using a certain amplitude as control parameter in the harmonic balance process, and then the bifurcation, limit cycle flutter phenomena and the number of harmonic terms were analyzed. Finally, numerical results calculated by the Runge-Kutta method were given to verify the results obtained by the proposed procedure. It has been shown that the incremental harmonic method is effective and precise in the analysis of strongly nonlinear flutter with multiple structural nonlinearities.     

A new method for predicting the maximum vibration amplitude of periodic solution of non-linear system

An original method based on the proposed framework for calculating the maximum vibration amplitude of periodic solution of non-linear system is presented. The problem of determining the worst maximum vibration is transformed into a non-linear optimization problem. The harmonic balance method and the Hill method are selected to construct the general non-linear equality and inequality constraints. The resulting constrained maximization problem is then solved by using the MultiStart algorithm. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed approach is illustrated through two numerical examples. Numerical examples show that the proposed method can, at much lower cost, give results with higher accuracy as compared with numerical results obtained by a parameter continuation method.     

Nonlinear vibration of a two-mass system with nonlinear stiffnesses

An analytical approach is developed for nonlinear free vibration of a conservative, two-degree-of-freedom mass–spring system having linear and nonlinear stiffnesses. The main contribution of the proposed approach is twofold. First, it introduces the transformation of two nonlinear differential equations of a two-mass system using suitable intermediate variables into a single nonlinear differential equation and, more significantly, the treatment a nonlinear differential system by linearization coupled with Newton’s method and harmonic balance method. New and accurate higher-order analytical approximate solutions for the nonlinear system are established. After solving the nonlinear differential equation, the displacement of two-mass system can be obtained directly from the governing linear second-order differential equation. Unlike the common perturbation method, this higher-order Newton–harmonic balance (NHB) method is valid for weak as well as strong nonlinear oscillation systems. On the other hand, the new approach yields simple approximate analytical expressions valid for small as well as large amplitudes of oscillation unlike the classical harmonic balance method which results in complicated algebraic equations requiring further numerical analysis. In short, this new approach yields extended scope of applicability, simplicity, flexibility in application, and avoidance of complicated numerical integration as compared to the previous approaches such as the perturbation and the classical harmonic balance methods. Two examples of nonlinear two-degree-of-freedom mass–spring system are analyzed and verified with published result, exact solutions and numerical integration data.     

On quadruple integral equations related to a certain crack problem

An exact solution of a four part mixed boundary value problem representing a three colinear crack system connected with specified crack opening displacements between the cracks is obtained. The three cracks thus become one with pressure and/or opening displacement prescribed on the crack face. From considerations of dual symmetry and a formulation based on Papkovich-Neuber harmonic functions, the boundary value problem is reduced to solving a quadruple set of integral equations. An exact solution of these equations is derived using a modified finite Hilbert transform technique. The closed form results for the stress distributions and the crack-tip stress intensity factors are presented. Limiting cases of the solution yield results which agree with well known solutions.     

Accurate Higher-Order Analytical Approximate Solutions to Large-Amplitude Oscillating Systems with a General Non-Rational Restoring Force

A new approximate analytical approach for accurate higher-order nonlinear solutions of oscillations with large amplitude is presented in this paper. The oscillatory system is subjected to a non-rational restoring force. This approach is built upon linearization of the governing dynamic equation associated with the method of harmonic balance. Unlike the classical harmonic balance method, simple linear algebraic equations instead of nonlinear algebraic equations are obtained upon linearization prior to harmonic balancing. This approach also explores large parameter regions beyond the classical perturbation methods which in principle are confined to problems with small parameters. It has significant contribution as there exist many nonlinear problems without small parameters. Through some examples in this paper, we establish the general approximate analytical formulas for the exact period and periodic solution which are valid for small as well as large amplitudes of oscillation.     

Analytical approximation to large-amplitude oscillation of a non-linear conservative system

This paper deals with non-linear oscillation of a conservative system having inertia and static non-linearities. By combining the linearization of the governing equation with the method of harmonic balance, we establish analytical approximate solutions for the non-linear oscillations of the system. Unlike the classical harmonic balance method, linearization is performed prior to proceeding with harmonic balancing, thus resulting in a set of linear algebraic equations instead of one of non-linear algebraic equations. Hence, we are able to establish analytical approximate formulas for the exact frequency and periodic solution. These analytical approximate formulas show excellent agreement with the exact solutions, and are valid for small as well as large amplitudes of oscillation.     

Approximate analytical solution in slow-fast system based on modified multi-scale method

A simple, yet accurate modified multi-scale method (MMSM) for an approximately analytical solution in nonlinear oscillators with two time scales under forced harmonic excitation is proposed. This method depends on the classical multi-scale method (MSM) and the method of variation of parameters. Assuming that the forced excitation is a constant, one could easily obtain the approximate analytical solution of the simplified system based on the traditional MSM. Then, this solution for the oscillator under forced harmonic excitation could be established after replacing the harmonic excitation by the constant excitation. To certify the correctness and precision of the proposed analytical method, the van der Pol system with two scales subject to slowly periodic excitation is investigated; this system presents rich dynamical phenomena such as spiking (SP), spiking-quiescence (SP-QS), and quiescence (QS) responses. The approximate analytical expressions of the three types of responses are given by the MMSM, and it can be found that the precision of the new analytical method is higher than that of the classical MSM and better than that of the harmonic balance method (HBM). The results obtained by the present method are considerably better than those obtained by traditional methods, quantitatively and qualitatively, particularly when the excitation frequency is far less than the natural frequency of the system.     

Nonlinearly damped systems under simultaneous broad-band and harmonic excitations

The probability distribution of the response of a nonlinearly damped system subjected to both broad-band and harmonic excitations is investigated. The broad-band excitation is additive, and the harmonic excitations can be either additive or multiplicative. The frequency of a harmonic excitation can be either near or far from a resonance frequency of the system. The stochastic averaging method is applied to obtain the Itô type stochastic differential equations for an averaged system described by a set of slowly varying variables, which are approximated as components of a Markov vector. Then, a procedure based on the concept of stationary potential is used to obtain the exact stationary probability density for a class of such averaged systems. For those systems not belonging to this class, approximate solutions are obtained using the method of weighted residuals. Application of the exact and approximate solution procedures are illustrated in two specific cases, and the results are compared with those obtained from Monte Carlo simulations.     

Linearized harmonic balance based derivation of slow flow for some class of autonomous single degree of freedom oscillators

In this paper we exploit the embedding of linearization in the harmonic balance method developed by Wu and its collaborators to propose an approach for deriving the slow flow for some class of damped autonomous single degree of freedom oscillators. The linearized harmonic balance method is used to compute the coefficients of the harmonics of an assumed form of the solution and to derive a system of two coupled ordinary differential equations related to the slow flow. A power series procedure is next used to decouple the coupled system and to obtain the slow flow. Two examples provided to illustrate the proposed procedure show excellent results.     

Approximate analytical solution in slow-fast system based on modi?ed multi-scale method

A simple, yet accurate modi?ed multi-scale method(MMSM) for an approximately analytical solution in nonlinear oscillators with two time scales under forced harmonic excitation is proposed. This method depends on the classical multi-scale method(MSM) and the method of variation of parameters. Assuming that the forced excitation is a constant, one could easily obtain the approximate analytical solution of the simpli?ed system based on the traditional MSM. Then, this solution for the oscillator under forced harmonic excitation could be established after replacing the harmonic excitation by the constant excitation. To certify the correctness and precision of the proposed analytical method, the van der Pol system with two scales subject to slowly periodic excitation is investigated; this system presents rich dynamical phenomena such as spiking(SP),spiking-quiescence(SP-QS), and quiescence(QS) responses. The approximate analytical expressions of the three types of responses are given by the MMSM, and it can be found that the precision of the new analytical method is higher than that of the classical MSM and better than that of the harmonic balance method(HBM). The results obtained by the present method are considerably better than those obtained by traditional methods,quantitatively and qualitatively, particularly when the excitation frequency is far less than the natural frequency of the system.     

An analytical approximate technique for a class of strongly non-linear oscillators

An analytical approximate technique for large amplitude oscillations of a class of conservative single degree-of-freedom systems with odd non-linearity is proposed. The method incorporates salient features of both Newton's method and the harmonic balance method. Unlike the classical harmonic balance method, accurate analytical approximate solutions are possible because linearization of the governing differential equation by Newton's method is conducted prior to harmonic balancing. The approach yields simple linear algebraic equations instead of non-linear algebraic equations without analytical solution. With carefully constructed iterations, only a few iterations can provide very accurate analytical approximate solutions for the whole range of oscillation amplitude beyond the domain of possible solution by the conventional perturbation methods or harmonic balance method. Three examples including cubic-quintic Duffing oscillators are presented to illustrate the usefulness and effectiveness of the proposed technique.     

On the Perturbation of Hamel Flow Due to Unevenness of the Channel Walls

A method of analyzing the receptivity of longitudinally inhomogeneous flows is proposed. The process of excitation of natural oscillations is studied with reference to the simplest inhomogeneous flow: the two-dimensional flow of a viscous incompressible fluid in a channel with plane nonparallel walls. As physical factors generating perturbations, the cases of a stationary irregularity and localized vibration of the channel walls are considered. By changing the independent variables and unknown functions of the perturbed flow, the problem of the generation of stationary perturbations above an irregularity is reduced to a longitudinally homogeneous boundary-value problem which is solved using a Fourier transform in the longitudinal variable. The same problem is investigated using another method based on representing the required solution in the form of a superposition of solutions of the homogeneous problem and a forced solution calculated in the locally homogeneous approximation. As a result, the problem of calculating the longitudinal distributions of the amplitudes of the normal modes is reduced to the solution of an infinite-dimensional inhomogeneous system of ordinary differential equations. The numerical solution obtained using this method is tested by comparison with an exact calculation based on the Fourier method. Using the method proposed, the problem of flow receptivity to harmonic oscillations of parts of the channel walls is analyzed. The calculations performed show that the method is promising for investigating the receptivity of longitudinally inhomogeneous flow in a laminar boundary layer.     

Localized Basis Function Method for Computing Limit Cycle Oscillations

An alternate approach to the standard harmonic balance method (based on Fourier transforms) is proposed. The proposed method begins with an idea similar to the harmonic balance method, i.e. to transform the initial set of differential equations of the dynamics to a set of discrete algebraic equations. However, as distinct from previous harmonic balance techniques, the proposed method uses a set of basis functions which are localized in time and are not necessarily sinusoidal. Also as distinct from previous harmonic balance methods, the algebraic equations obtained after the transformation of the differential equations of the dynamics are solved in the time domain rather than the frequency domain. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the performance of the method for autonomous and forced dynamics of a Van der Pol oscillator.     

Nonlinear forced vibrations of rotating anisotropic beams

This work deals with forced vibration of nonlinear rotating anisotropic beams with uniform cross sections. Coupling the Galerkin method with the balance harmonic method, the nonlinear intrinsic and geometrically exact equations of motion for anisotropic beams subjected to large displacements, are converted into a static formulation. This latter is treated with two continuation methods. The first one is the asymptotic-numerical method, where power series expansions and Padé approximants are used to represent the generalized vector of displacement and the frequency. The second one is the pseudo-arclength continuation method. Numerical tests dealing with isotropic and anisotropic beams are considered. The natural frequencies obtained for prismatic beams are compared with the literature. Response curves are obtained and the nonlinearity is investigated for various geometrical conditions, excitation amplitudes and kinematical conditions. The nonlinearity related to the angular speed for prismatic isotropic beam is thus identified. The stability of the solution branch is examined, in the frequency domain using the Floquet theory.