Stability of a tensegrity structure: application to cell mechanics

Stability studies of a tensegrity structure, used as a model for cell deformability, are performed. This structure is composed of 6 slender struts interconnected by 24 linearly elastic cables. The cables and the struts are governed by linear constitutive laws. The struts are allowed to buckle. Adapting experimental evidence, the struts have already buckled at the reference placement due to the prestress of the tendons. A general procedure for studying the stability behavior of the particular tensegrity model is presented. The reference placement is defined by the prestress, and the equilibrium placements are defined for any three-dimensional applied forces.     

Dihedral ‘star’ tensegrity structures

This paper presents conditions for self-equilibrium and super stability of dihedral ‘star’ tensegrity structures, based on their dihedral symmetry. It is demonstrated that the structures are super stable if and only if they have an odd number of struts, and the struts are as close as possible to each other. Numerical investigations show that their prestress stability is sensitive to the geometry realisation.     

Self-stress design of tensegrity grid structures with exostresses

A numerical method is presented for initial self-stress design of tensegrity grid structures with exostresses, which is defined as a linear combination of the coefficients of independent self-stress modes. A discussion on proper division of the number of member groups for the purpose of existence of a single integral feasible self-stress mode has been explicitly given. Dummy elements to transform the tensegrity grid structure with statically indeterminate supports into self-stressed pin-jointed system without supports are employed. The unilateral properties of the stresses in cables and struts are taken into account. Evaluation of the stability for the structure is also considered. Several numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the efficiency and robustness in searching initial single integral feasible self-stress mode for tensegrity grid structures.     

Stability of an elastic cytoskeletal tensegrity model

An elastic cytoskeletal tensegrity structure composed by six inextensible elastic struts and 24 elastic cables is considered. The model is studied, adopting delay convention for stability. Critical conditions for simple and compound instabilities are defined. Post-critical behavior is also described. Equilibrium states with buckling of the struts are also considered. It is revealed that critical Euler buckling load of the struts is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the existence of bifurcated equilibrium states, caused by buckling of the struts.     

GEOMETRIC DRAWING METHOD FOR FORM-FINDING AND FORCE-FINDING FOR TRIANGULAR PRISM OF TENSEGRITY

力学和几何学是密不可分的,本文给出了一种几何作图法进行端面平行时张拉整体三棱柱的找形方法和作图确定自平衡内力大小的找力方法,并推导出找形后张拉整体三棱柱自平衡内力的力密度计算公式,通过算例验证了几何作图法找形与找力的正确性。几何作图法找形和找力方法操作简单,直观可控,可以在CAD软件中实现,甚至可以纸上手绘实现;自平衡力密度公式简单,表达直观,是力密度法的一种几何实现。     

Self-equilibrium and stability of regular truncated tetrahedral tensegrity structures

This paper presents analytical conditions of self-equilibrium and super-stability for the regular truncated tetrahedral tensegrity structures, nodes of which have one-to-one correspondence to the tetrahedral group. These conditions are presented in terms of force densities, by investigating the block-diagonalized force density matrix. The block-diagonalized force density matrix, with independent sub-matrices lying on its leading diagonal, is derived by making use of the tetrahedral symmetry via group representation theory. The condition for self-equilibrium is found by enforcing the force density matrix to have the necessary number of nullities, which is four for three-dimensional structures. The condition for super-stability is further presented by guaranteeing positive semi-definiteness of the force density matrix.     

Dynamic behavior and vibration control of a tensegrity structure

Tensegrities are lightweight space reticulated structures composed of cables and struts. Stability is provided by the self-stress state between tensioned and compressed elements. Tensegrity systems have in general low structural damping, leading to challenges with respect to dynamic loading. This paper describes dynamic behavior and vibration control of a full-scale active tensegrity structure. Laboratory testing and numerical simulations confirmed that control of the self-stress influences the dynamic behavior. A multi-objective vibration control strategy is proposed. Vibration control is carried out by modifying the self-stress level of the structure through small movement of active struts in order to shift the natural frequencies away from excitation. The PGSL stochastic search algorithm successfully identifies good control commands enabling reduction of structural response to acceptable levels at minimum control cost.     

A novel method of determining the sole configuration of tensegrity structures

A novel analysis method is presented for form-finding of tensegrity structures. The spectral decomposition of the force density matrix and the singular value decomposition of the equilibrium matrix are performed iteratively to find the feasible sets of nodal coordinates and force densities. An algorithm of determining the sole configuration of free-form tensegrities is provided by specifying an independent set of nodal coordinates, which indicates the geometrical and mechanical properties of the structures can be at least partly controlled by the proposed method. Several illustrative examples are presented to demonstrate the efficiency and robustness in finding self-equilibrium configurations of tensegrity structures.     

On the elastica solution of a T3 tensegrity structure

Stability studies of a T3 tensegrity structure are performed. This structure is composed of three slender struts interconnected by six nonlinear elastic tendons and is prestressed. The struts are governed by linear constitutive laws and are allowed to buckle. Since tensegrity is used for modeling structures with quite large deformations, for example the cytoskeleton, and bifurcation theory—valid for small solutions of the nonlinear equations—does not directly apply, a general procedure for studying the stability behavior of the particular tensegrity model based upon the elastica theory is presented. The reference placement is defined by the prestress, and the equilibrium placements are defined by the applied force and moment.     

Investigation of clustered actuation in tensegrity structures

As tensegrity research is moving away from static structures toward active structures it is becoming critical that new actuation strategies and comprehensive active structures theories are developed to fully exploit the properties of tensegrity structures. In this paper a new general tensegrity paradigm is presented that incorporates a concept referred to as clustered actuation. Clustered actuation exploits the existence of cable elements in a tensegrity structure by allowing cables to be run over frictionless pulleys or through frictionless loops at the nodes. This actuation strategy is a scalable solution that can be utilized for active structures that incorporate many active elements and can reduce the number of actuators necessary for complex shape changes. Clustered actuation also has secondary benefits, specifically reducing the force requirements of actuators in dynamic structures, reducing the number of pre-stress modes to potentially one global mode and relieving element size limitations that occur with embedded actuation. Newly formulated clustered equilibrium equations are developed using energy methods and are shown to be a generalization of the classic tensegrity governing equations. Pre-stress analysis, mechanism analysis and stability of clustered structures are discussed. Lastly, examples compare the mechanics of a clustered structure to an equivalent classic structure and the utility of clustering is highlighted by allowing for actuation throughout a class 1 (no bar-to-bar connections) tensegrity while not embedding the actuators into the structure.     

Experimental and numerical study on the self-stress design of tensegrity systems

Tensegrity systems as kinematically and statically indeterminate pin-jointed systems are characterized by mechanisms and self-stress states. Unlike the other reticulated systems, in tensegrity systems, unilateral behavior of cables causes some problems in determining the basis of compatible self-stress states. At the present study, self-stress design of tensegrity systems is presented. Experimental study on two 3×3×0.7 m tensegrity grids was conducted to verify the accuracy and validity of the numerical method. Using supporting constraints, an effective method for the implementation of self-stress states in a much reduced number of stages is proposed and calibrated. Considering the results of the present study, the self-stress design of these systems can be improved to obtain specific desired behavior.     

Algebraic tensegrity form-finding

This paper concerns the form-finding problem for general and symmetric tensegrity structures with shape constraints. A number of different geometries are treated and several fundamental properties of tensegrity structures are identified that simplify the form-finding problem. The concept of a tensegrity invariance (similarity) transformation is defined and it is shown that tensegrity equilibrium is preserved under affine node position transformations. This result provides the basis for a new tensegrity form-finding tool. The generality of the problem formulation makes it suitable for the automated generation of the equations and their derivatives. State-of-the-art numerical algorithms are applied to solve several example problems. Examples are given for tensegrity plates, shell-class symmetric tensegrity structures and structures generated by applying similarity transformation.     

数字状张拉整体结构的构型设计与力学性能模拟

针对大型张拉整体结构的设计问题,选取四棱柱状张拉整体结构和截角正八面体状张拉整体结构作为基本胞元,采用节点连接节点的方式建立球柱组合式数字状张拉整体结构,并使用基于结构刚度矩阵的大变形非线性数值求解方法对其进行力学性能分析.在两类胞元满足各自的自平衡条件和稳定性条件的前提下,组合得到的数字状张拉整体结构亦处于自平衡稳定状态,搭建了实物模型进行验证.以数字8状张拉整体结构为例,模拟研究了结构承受自重等分布载荷和单轴拉压等端部载荷时的静力学响应,以及结构无阻尼振动时的固有频率和模态等动力学性能.结果表明,结构在自重作用下的变形行为受初始预应力、压杆密度和拉索刚度的影响较大,对其进行合理配置方可确保结构具有足够刚度抵抗自重;结构在单轴拉压作用下呈现非线性的载荷-位移曲线,拉伸刚度随变形量的增大而增大,压缩刚度随变形量的增大而减小;结构的固有频率随初始预应力的增大而增大,而模态振型基本不变.研究结果丰富了大型张拉整体结构的外形种类,有望推动此类结构在土木建筑、结构材料等领域的应用.      

Analysis of clustered tensegrity structures using a modified dynamic relaxation algorithm

Tensegrities are spatial, reticulated and lightweight structures that are increasingly investigated as structural solutions for active and deployable structures. Tensegrity systems are composed only of axially loaded elements and this provides opportunities for actuation and deployment through changing element lengths. In cable-based actuation strategies, the deficiency of having to control too many cable elements can be overcome by connecting several cables. However, clustering active cables significantly changes the mechanics of classical tensegrity structures. Challenges emerge for structural analysis, control and actuation. In this paper, a modified dynamic relaxation (DR) algorithm is presented for static analysis and form-finding. The method is extended to accommodate clustered tensegrity structures. The applicability of the modified DR to this type of structure is demonstrated. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed method is compared with that of a transient stiffness method. Results obtained from two numerical examples show that the values predicted by the DR method are in a good agreement with those generated by the transient stiffness method. Finally it is shown that the DR method scales up to larger structures more efficiently.     

Steady-state dynamics of a 3D tensegrity structure: Simulations and experiments

This paper considers a modeling and analysis approach for the investigation of the linear and nonlinear steady-state dynamics of a base excited 3D tensegrity module carrying a top mass. The tensegrity module contains three compressive members, which may buckle and six cables (tendons). First, a dynamic model of the system is derived using Lagrange’s equation with constraints. The buckling modeling of the compressive members is based on the assumed-mode method with a single mode discretization. The tendons are modeled as piecewise linear springs, which can only take tensile forces. This research focusses on the dynamic stability of the tensegrity structure by defining the geometrical and material properties in such a way that the system is just below the static stability boundary. Static and linear dynamic analysis is performed. In the nonlinear steady-state analysis, frequency-amplitude plots, power spectral density plots, bifurcation point continuation diagrams, and Poincaré maps are presented. A tensegrity structure is designed and manufactured and an experimental set-up is realized in order to validate the model by comparing experimentally and numerically obtained responses. In the validation stage, the numerical results are based on an amplifier-shaker-tensegrity structure model. It can be concluded that the numerical results match partly quantitatively and partly qualitatively with the experimentally obtained responses.     

斜拉桥合理成桥状态确定的一阶分析法

本文建立了斜拉桥索力优化的非线性规划模型，其中以斜拉桥主梁和索塔的弯曲应变能为目标函数，以各斜拉索的索力为设计变量，结构的应力及索力为约束条件，采用一阶分析法进行求解，用以确定成桥合理状态的索力。在计算中，考虑大跨度斜拉桥各种几何非线性因素的影响，并列出了优化模型的具体表达式及优化过程中的关键求解策略。应用该法和空间非线性有限元分析程序分析了某千米级斜拉桥方案的合理成桥状态，计算结果表明：该方法简单、有效。     

结构安定分析的Galerkin边界元方法

基于Melan静力安定定理,利用Galerkin边界元方法建立了多组交变载荷作用下结构安定分析的下限计算格式.在给定载荷域的载荷角点所对应载荷作用下,采用Galerkin边界元法计算相应的虚拟弹性应力场,并且利用结构在Galerkin边界元弹塑性增量计算中同一增量步中不同迭代步之间的应力差作为自平衡应力场的基矢量,通过这些基矢量的线性组合构造了自平衡应力场,大大降低了所形成的数学规划问题的未知变量数.并通过复合形法对非线性规划问题直接进行求解,得到了结构在交变载荷作用下的下限安定乘子.计算结果表明,所采用的方法具有较高的精度和计算效率.     

Lower bound shakedown analysis by the symmetric Galerkin boundary element method

In this paper, the static shakedown theorem is reformulated making use of the symmetric Galerkin boundary element method (SGBEM) rather than of finite element method. Based on the classical Melan’s theorem, a numerical solution procedure is presented for shakedown analysis of structures made of elastic-perfectly plastic material. The self-equilibrium stress field is constructed by linear combination of several basis self-equilibrium stress fields with parameters to be determined. These basis self-equilibrium stress fields are expressed as elastic responses of the body to imposed permanent strains obtained through elastic–plastic incremental analysis. The lower bound of shakedown load is obtained via a non-linear mathematical programming problem solved by the Complex method. Numerical examples show that it is feasible and efficient to solve the problems of shakedown analysis by using the SGBEM.     

A SOLUTION PROCEDURE FOR LOWER BOUND LIMIT AND SHAKEDOWN ANALYSIS BY SGBEM

The symmetric Galerkin boundary element method (SGBEM) instead of the finite element method is used to perform lower bound limit and shakedown analysis of structures. The self-equilibrium stress fields are constructed by a linear combination of several basic self-equilibrium stress fields with parameters to be determined. These basic self-equilibrium stress fields are expressed as elastic responses of the body to imposed permanent strains and obtained through elastic-plastic incremental analysis. The complex method is used to solve nonlinear programming and determine the maximal load amplifier. The limit analysis is treated as a special case of shakedown analysis in which only the proportional loading is considered. The numerical results show that SGBEM is efficient and accurate for solving limit and shakedown analysis problems. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 19902007), the National Foundation for Excellent Doctorial Dissertation of China (No. 200025) and the Basic Research Foundation of Tsinghua University.     

极限下限分析的正交基无单元Galerkin法

基于极限分析的下限定理,建立了用正交基无单元Galerkin法进行理想弹塑性结构极 限分析的整套求解算法．下限分析所需的虚拟弹性应力场可由正交基无单元Galerkin法直接 得到,所需的自平衡应力场由一组带有待定系数的自平衡应力场基矢量的线性组合进行模 拟．这些自平衡应力场基矢量可由弹塑性增量分析中的平衡迭代得到．通过对自平衡应力场 子空间的不断修正,整个问题的求解将化为一系列非线性数学规划子问题,并通过复合形法 进行求解．算例表明该方法有效地克服了维数障碍问题,使计算效率得到了充分的提高,是 切实可行的．