Finite element-based approach to modeling heterogeneous objects

Advances in materials and rapid prototyping technology, makes developing rapid-prototype heterogeneous parts possible. This paper proposes a finite element-based approach for modeling heterogeneous parts to facilitate rapid prototyping. In this approach, traditional geometrical and topological data are blended with materials information in the CAD model. It builds on a CAD system to create parts’ geometry which is then subdivided into a set of tetrahedral finite elements. With this, the design problem of material distribution in the whole body can be handled at the finite element level. The material composition of each point inside a finite element is formulated in terms of four control nodes of the finite element and a blending function. Moreover, design rules for modeling heterogeneous parts are introduced in the paper, making the modeling solution more robust.     

基于五次Hermite插值的机械臂最短路径规划研究

为了保证机械臂高效率和平稳的运行,机械臂运动轨迹曲线一般需要具有C~2连续性,且运动路径具有最优性.采用五次Hermite插值函数方法,构造机械臂的运动轨迹.求解最优化问题得到连接点处二阶导数信息,构造满足上述条件的曲线轨迹,最后给出了两个实例来验证该方法的有效性.     

Full forward kinematics of redundant kinematic hybrid manipulator

A unified recursive mathematic model is established for full forward kinematics analysis of various redundant kinematic hybrid manipulators which are formed by several different parallel manipulators connected in series. In the established model, the relationships between the general input velocity/acceleration and the general output velocity/acceleration are discovered. The Jacobian matrices for mapping the general output velocities to the general input velocity and the Hessian matrices for mapping the general output velocities to the general input acceleration are derived. The unified iteration recursive formulae are derived for solving the general output velocity/acceleration of the end moving platform of the redundant kinematic hybrid manipulator by only giving the general input velocity/acceleration of every parallel manipulator. A 3D model of a novel (4SPS + SPR )+ (4SPS/SP) + 3SPR type hybrid manipulator is constructed and its full forward velocity/acceleration formulae are derived from the established unified recursive mathematic model and are proved to be correct by utilizing a simulation solution of the novel redundant kinematic hybrid manipulator.     

A finite element approach to the design and dynamic analysis of platform type robot manipulators

The design of a closed-loop platform-type robot manipulator using the finite element method is presented. The present approach aims at the optimization of the manipulator geometry and prediction ot the actuator parameters. Beam elements and triangular plate elements are used for the finite element model. Manipulators having six spherical-prismatic-spherical (6 SPS) pairs and of tetrahedron construction have been compared for their dynamic performance.     

Stress recovery procedure for solving boundary value problems in the mechanics of a deformable solid by the finite element method

A stress recovery procedure, based on the determination of the forces at the mesh points using a stiffness matrix obtained by the finite element method for the variational Lagrange equation, is described. The vectors of the forces reduced to the mesh points are constructed for the known stiffness matrices of the elements using the displacements at the mesh points found from the solution of the problem. On the other hand, these mesh point forces are determined in terms of the unknown forces distributed over the surface of an element and given shape functions. As a result, a system of Fredholm integral equations of the first kind is obtained, the solution of which gives these distributed forces. The stresses at the mesh points are determined for the values of these forces found on the surfaces of the finite element mesh (including at the mesh points) using the Cauchy relations, which relate the forces, stresses and the normal to the surface. The special features of the use of the stress recovery procedure are demonstrated for a plane problem in the linear theory of elasticity.     

Mixed finite element models for free vibrations of thin-walled beams

Simple mixed finite element models are developed for the free vibration analysis of curved thin-walled beams with arbitrary open cross section. The analytical formulation is based on a Vlasov's type thin-walled beam theory which includes the effects of flexural-torsional coupling, and the additional effects of transverse shear deformation and rotary inertia. The fundamental unknowns consist of seven internal forces and seven generalized displacements of the beam. The element characteristic arrays are obtained by using a perturbed Lagrangian-mixed variational principle. Only C⁰ continuity is required for the generalized displacements. The internal forces and the Lagrange multiplier are allowed to be discontinuous at interelement boundaries.

Numerical results are presented to demonstrate the high accuracy and effectiveness of the elements developed. The standard of comparison is taken to be the solutions obtained by using two-dimensional plate/shell models for the beams.     

Collapse criteria of foam cells under various loading

Recently porous materials are widely used in civil and mechanical engineering. In particular, such porous materials as metal and polymer foams have applications in lightweight structures. From mechanics point of view foams can demonstrate unusual behavior such as strain localization related to foam cells buckling under certain loads. The aim of this work is the elaboration of the model of foam material taking into account the cell collapse. We consider the cell collapse initiation during the elastic instability and its further evolution under loading. The geometrical structure of foam is generated with the use of the Voronoi algorithm. Based on stochastic distributions of cells we create various geometrical models of foams. The influence of the cell volume, wall thicknesses and material properties of the foam material on critical loads is obtained. The calculations are performed with the use of Abaqus CAD/CAE system. (© 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Strategies for the Computation of Configurational Forces in Dissipative Media

Configurational forces can be interpreted as driving forces on material inhomogeneities such as crack tips. In dissipative media the total configurational force on an inhomogeneity consists of an elastic contribution and a contribution due to the dissipative processes in the material. For the computation of discrete configurational forces acting at the nodes of a finite element mesh, the elastic and dissipative contributions must be evaluated at integration point level. While the evaluation of the elastic contribution is straightforward, the evaluation of the dissipative part is faced with certain difficulties. This is because gradients of internal variables are necessary in order to compute the dissipative part of the configurational force. For the sake of efficiency, these internal variables are usually treated as local history data at integration point level in finite element (FE) implementations. Thus, the history data needs to be projected to the nodes of the FE mesh in order to compute the gradients by means of shape function interpolations of nodal data as it is standard practice. However, this is a rather cumbersome method which does not easily integrate into standard finite element frameworks. An alternative approach which facilitates the computation of gradients of local history data is investigated in this work. This approach is based on the definition of subelements within the elements of the FE mesh and allows for a straightforward integration of the configurational force computation into standard finite element software. The suitability and the numerical accuracy of different projection approaches and the subelement technique are discussed and analyzed exemplarily within the context of a crystal plasticity model. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Generating a reference trajectory with defined kinematics for the IRb-6 manipulator

The fundamental problem in industrial robots control concerns algorithms generating reference trajectories.References [1–4] suggest generating algorithms of a reference trajectory, which are based on an arbitrary discretization of the manipulator's internal coordinates. Each point of discretization in the external space approximating a reference trajectory corresponds to known discretized internal coordinates of the manipulator.In [5–7], iteration methods of determining the internal coordinates corresponding to external coordinates of the reference trajectory point have been suggested. In this method of internal coordinates, determining the point of the reference trajectory is being approached in successive steps of an iterative computation. In [5], a modified iterative method of generation of a straight segment reference trajectory has been presented.Analytic formulae, which are the solution of an inverse problem of manipulator kinematics, enable design of trajectory generating algorithms which compute, in one step only, the internal coordinates of points lying exactly on the reference trajectory, with the accuracy resulting from the computer register length.In this paper, the author has presented an original PLAN2 computer algorithm generating reference trajectories of motion for a task. The kinematics of those trajectories is defined at selected points through which a task is to be passed, the distances between them being optional. The algorithm is based on formulae which are analytic solutions to an inverse problem for an IRb-6 manipulator kinematics.     

Control of mechanical systems with uncertain parameters by means of small forces

An approach to the construction of a feedback control for non-linear Lagrange mechanical systems with uncertain parameters is developed. A Lagrange mechanical system with uncertain parameters, which is subject to the action of potential forces, control forces and unknown perturbations is considered is considered. It is assumed that the potential forces can be considerably greater than the control forces which, in their turn, are greater than the perturbations. An approach to the construction of a control, is proposed which enables one to bring a system from an arbitrary initial state to a specified final state in a finite time using a bounded control. A procedure, in which the specified nominal trajectory of the motion is tracked, is used. Initially, the trajectory, joining the specified initial and final states of the system, is constructed for a certain dynamical system which is close to the initial system but with completely known parameters. Then, using deviation equations, a control is constructed which brings the initial system onto this nominal trajectory in a finite time and subsequently forces the system to move along this nominal trajectory up to the final state. The control law used in tracking the nominal trajectory is based on a linear feedback, the gains of which depends on the discrepancy between the real trajectory and the nominal trajectory. The gain increase and tend to infinity as the discrepancies tend to zero but the control forces remain bounded and satisfy the conditions imposed on them. The results of numerical modelling of the controlled motions of a plane double pendulum are presented as an illustration.     

Static and dynamic analyses of isogeometric curvilinearly stiffened plates

The isogeometric analysis (IGA) is a new approach which builds a seamless connection between Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE). This approach which uses the B-Splines or the Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) as a geometric representation of the object is a discretization technology for numerical analysis. The IGA has advantages of capturing exact geometry and making the flexibility of refinement, which results in higher calculation accuracy. To study the static and dynamic characteristics of curvilinearly stiffened plates, the NURBS based isogeometric analysis approach is developed in this paper. We use this approach to analyze the static deformation, the free vibration and the vibration behavior in the presence of in-plane loads of curvilinearly stiffened plates. Furthermore, the large deformation and the large amplitude vibration of the curvilinearly stiffened plates are also studied based on the von Karman's large deformation theory. One of the superiorities of the present method in the analysis of the stiffened plates is that the element number is much less than commercial finite element software, whereas another advantage is that the mesh refinement process is much more convenient compared with traditional finite element method (FEM). Some numerical examples are shown to validate the correctness and superiority of the present method by comparing with the results from commercial software and finite element analysis.     

Mixed Variational Principles and Robust Finite Element Design of Gradient Plasticity at Finite Strains

The modeling of size effects in elastic-plastic solids, such as the width of shear bands or the grain size dependence in polycrystals, must be based on non-standard theories which incorporate length-scales. This is achieved by models of strain gradient plasticity, incorporating spatial gradients of selected micro-structural fields which describe the evolving dissipative mechanisms. The key aspect of this work is to provide a rigorous incremental variational formulation and mixed finite element design of additive finite gradient plasticity in the logarithmic strain space. We start from a mixed saddle point principle for metric-type plasticity, which is specified for the important model problem of isochoric plasticity with gradient-extended hardening/softening response. To this end, we propose a novel finite element design of the coupled problem incorporating a local-global solution strategy of short- and long-range fields. This includes several new aspects, such as extended Q1P0-type and MINI-type finite elements for gradient plasticity [4]. (© 2013 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The Finite Dean Problem: Nonlinear Theory

The Dean problem models flows in curved pipes of square cross-sectionby considering pressure-driven axisymmetric flow between concentriccylinders. The inclusion of ends on these cylinders introducesa range of flows not seen in an infinite formulation. Weaklynonlinear analyses are made possible by considering end conditionssuch as those of Blennerhassett & Hall (1979). This paperextends to Dean flow this nonlinear work of Hall (1980). A newderivation of the amplitude equations will be given, which alsouses a perturbation from the intersection points of the oddand even curves of critical Taylor number against cylinder heightgiven by linear theory. Equilibrium solutions of the amplitudeequations are then found and their stability examined. Unlikethe Taylor-vortex results of Hall, the properties of these solutionsdepend on the particular intersection point under consideration.A comparison is given with previous work on the finite Deanproblem.     

Intelligent active force control of a 3-RRR parallel manipulator incorporating fuzzy resolved acceleration control

This paper introduces a novel intelligent control scheme for robust and precise positioning and orientation of a class of highly non-linear 3-RRR (revolute-revolute-revolute) planar parallel manipulator. The primary objective is to force the manipulator to track accurately a prescribed Cartesian trajectory when the system is subjected to different types of disturbances in the forms of forced harmonic excitations. A two level fuzzy tuning resolved acceleration control (FLRAC) is first designed and implemented to the system to demonstrate the stable response of the manipulator in performing trajectory tracking tasks in the absence of the disturbances. In this scheme, the first level of fuzzy tuning is used to acquire the proportional-derivative (PD) gains linearly while the second level considers non-linear tuning for determining the other parameters of the fuzzy controller to increase its performance. Then, the controller is added in series with an active force controller (AFC) to create a novel two degree-of-freedom (DOF) controller known as FLRAC-AFC which is subsequently and rigorously tested for system robustness and accuracy in tracking the prescribed trajectory. The simulation study provides further insight into the potentials of the proposed robotic system in rejecting the disturbances for the given operating conditions. The results clearly show that the FLRAC-AFC scheme provides a much superior trajectory tracking capability compared to the conventional linear RAC alone.     

PROCRACK-A Software Tool for Finite Element Simulation of Three-Dimensional Fatigue Crack Growth

The lifetime of structural components is limited by fatigue cracks. After initiation from an existing defect the crack grows subcritically until it reaches a critical size. At this point it becomes unstable and the structural component fails. PROCRACK is a powerful tool that enables the commercial finite element software Abaqus to calculate the crack propagation in pre-cracked components. The complete capability of Abaqus can be used to simulate nearly arbitrary geometries. Abaqus/CAE is used for the three-dimensional modeling of the initial crack at a geometrical level by means of points, lines and triangles. The numerical analysis is performed by Abaqus/Standard. PROCRACK automatically generates a tube-shaped submodel around the crack front to calculate the stress intensity factors with high accuracy. The Paris law or the NASGRO equation can be used to calculate the incremental crack growth. The shape of the crack and the finite element mesh are updated in every crack growth step. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Flexible-link robots with combined trajectory tracking and vibration control

This work deals with asymptotic trajectory tracking and active damping injection on a flexible-link robot by application of Multiple Positive Position Feedback. The flexible-link robot is modeled and validated by using finite element methods and experimental modal analysis, and then a reduced order model of the flexible-link robot dynamics, up to the first dominant vibration modes, is employed for experimental evaluation on a test rig. Then, a combined control scheme is synthesized in two parts: first, a Sliding-Mode Control based on a cascaded Proportional-Integral-Derivative for regulation and trajectory tracking tasks, via a direct current motor torque as the control input for the overall system dynamics, and, second, a Multiple Positive Position Feedback for active vibration control and attenuation of residual vibrations on the tip position, via the input voltage applied to a piezoelectric patch actuator attached directly on the flexible beam. The results are evaluated on an experimental platform, where the dynamic performance of the overall active vibration control scheme leads to fast and effective tracking results, with damping ratios increased up to 300%.     

Finite element analysis and modeling of structure with bolted joints

In this work, in order to investigate a modeling technique of the structure with bolted joints, four kinds of finite element models are introduced; a solid bolt model, a coupled bolt model, a spider bolt model, and a no-bolt model. All the proposed models take into account pretension effect and contact behavior between flanges to be joined. Among these models, the solid bolt model, which is modeled by using 3D solid elements and surface-to-surface contact elements between head/nut and the flange interfaces, provides the best accurate responses compared with the experimental results. In addition, the coupled bolt model, which couples degree of freedom between the head/nut and the flange, shows the best effectiveness and usefulness in view of computational time and memory usage. Finally, the bolt model proposed in this study is adopted for a structural analysis of a large marine diesel engine consisting of several parts which are connected by long stay bolts.     

Mathematical modeling and trajectory planning of mobile manipulators with flexible links and joints

This paper is concerned with mathematical modeling and optimal motion designing of flexible mobile manipulators. The system is composed of a multiple flexible links and flexible revolute joints manipulator mounted on a mobile platform. First, analyzing on kinematics and dynamics of the model is carried out then; open-loop optimal control approach is presented for optimal motion designing of the system. The problem is known to be complex since combined motion of the base and manipulator, non-holonomic constraint of the base and highly non-linear and complicated dynamic equations as a result of the flexible nature of both links and joints are taken into account. In the proposed method, the generalized coordinates and additional kinematic constraints are selected in such a way that the base motion coordination along the predefined path is guaranteed while the optimal motion trajectory of the end-effector is generated. This method by using Pontryagin’s minimum principle and deriving the optimality conditions converts the optimal control problem into a two point boundary value problem. A comparative assessment of the dynamic model is validated through computer simulations, and then additional simulations are done for trajectory planning of a two-link flexible mobile manipulator to demonstrate effectiveness and capability of the proposed approach.     

Vibration analysis of quasi-symmetric structures

An efficient computational procedure is presented for the free vibration analysis of structures with unsymmetric geometry. The procedure is based on approximating the unsymmetric vibrational response of the structure by a linear combination of a few symmetric and antisymmetric modes (global approximation vectors), each obtained using approximately half the degrees of freedom of the original model. The three key elements of the procedure are: (a) use of mixed finite element models having independent shape functions for the internal forces (stress resultants) and generalized displacements, with the internal forces allowed to be discontinuous at interelement boundaries, (b) operator splitting, or additive decomposition of the different arrays in the governing finite element equations to delineate the contributions to the symmetric and antisymmetric response vectors, and (c) use of a reduction method through successive application of the finite element method and the classical Bubnov-Galerkin technique. The finite element method is first used to generate a few symmetric and antisymmetric global approximation response vectors. Then, the classical Bubnov-Galerkin technique is used to substantially reduce the size of the eigenvalue problem.

An initial set of global approximation vectors is selected to be a few symmetric and antisymmetric eigenvectors, and their various-order derivatives with respect to a tracing parameter identifying all the correction terms to the symmetric (and antisymmetric) eigenvectors. A modified (improved) set of approximation vectors is obtained by using the inverse iteration procedure. The effectiveness of the proposed procedure is demonstrated by means of a numerical example.     

Automatic finite element formulation and assembly of hyperelastic higher order structural models

The formulation of higher order structural models and their discretization using the finite element method is difficult owing to their complexity, especially in the presence of nonlinearities. In this work a new algorithm for automating the formulation and assembly of hyperelastic higher-order structural finite elements is developed. A hierarchic series of kinematic models is proposed for modeling structures with special geometries and the algorithm is formulated to automate the study of this class of higher order structural models. The algorithm developed in this work sidesteps the need for an explicit derivation of the governing equations for the individual kinematic modes. Using a novel procedure involving a nodal degree-of-freedom based automatic assembly algorithm, automatic differentiation and higher dimensional quadrature, the relevant finite element matrices are directly computed from the variational statement of elasticity and the higher order kinematic model. Another significant feature of the proposed algorithm is that natural boundary conditions are implicitly handled for arbitrary higher order kinematic models. The validity algorithm is illustrated with examples involving linear elasticity and hyperelasticity.