Relationship between multibody dynamics computation and nonlinear vibration theory

This paper presents the ground-work of implementing the multibody dynamics codes to analyzing nonlinear coupled oscillators. The recent developments of the multibody dynamics have resulted in several computer codes that can handle large systems of differential and algebraic equations (DAE). However, these codes cannot be used in their current format without appropriate modifications. According to multibody dynamics theory, the differential equations of motion are linear in the acceleration, and the constraints are appended into the equations of motion through Lagrange's multipliers. This formulation should be able to predict the nonlinear phenomena established by the nonlinear vibration theory. This can be achieved only if the constraint algebraic equations are modified to include all the system kinematic nonlinearities. This modification is accomplished by considering secondary nonlinear displacements which are ignored in all current codes. The resulting set of DAE are solved by the Gear stiff integrator. The study also introduced the concept of constrained flexibility and uses an instantaneous energy checking function to improve integration accuracy in the numerical scheme. The general energy balance is a single scalar equation containing all the energy component contributions. The DAE solution is then compared with the solution predicted by the nonlinear vibration theory. It also establishes new foundation for the use of multibody dynamics codes in nonlinear vibration problems. It is found that the simulation CPU time is much longer than the simulation of the original equations of the system.     

Nonlinear dynamics and vibration reduction of a dry friction oscillator with SMA restraints

The dynamic behaviors of a dry friction oscillator with shape memory alloy (SMA) are investigated. Motion equations of the system are formulated by the restoring force of the oscillator in terms of a polynomial constitutive model dependent mainly on the temperature. The vibration response of the system and the influence of the temperature are investigated. It is shown that chaotic motions can be observed and dramatically changed by temperature characteristics. Moreover, some sliding bifurcations are also discovered and influenced by the temperature. Compared with conventional dry friction elastic oscillators, the dry friction SMA oscillator presents much richer dynamic behavior caused by pseudo-elasticity, and vibration reduction can be achieved through the shape memory property of SMA restraints.     

Nonlinear dynamics investigation of a multi-axis drive system due to the kinematic joints

Nonlinear Dynamics - Machining performance is greatly affected by vibration characteristics of machining tool systems. However, the nonlinear vibrations of kinematic joints were rarely considered...     

Computational dynamics: theory and applications of multibody systems

Multibody system dynamics is an essential part of computational dynamics a topic more generally dealing with kinematics and dynamics of rigid and flexible systems, finite elements methods, and numerical methods for synthesis, optimization and control including nonlinear dynamics approaches. The theoretical background of multibody dynamics is presented, the efficiency of recursive algorithms is shown, methods for dynamical analysis are summarized, and applications to vehicle dynamics and biomechanics are reported. In particular, the wear of railway wheels of high-speed trains and the metabolical cost of human locomotion is analyzed using multibody system methods.     

Numerical and experimental investigation on multibody systems with revolute clearance joints

A comprehensive combined numerical and experimental study on the dynamic response of a slider-crank mechanism with revolute clearance joints is presented and discussed in this paper to provide an experimental verification and validation of the predictive capabilities of the multibody clearance joint models. This study is supported in an experimental work in a test rig, which consists of a slider-crank mechanism with an adjustable radial clearance at the revolute joint between the slider and the connecting rod. The motion of the slider is measured with a linear transducer and an accelerometer. Dynamic tests at different operating crank speeds and with several clearance sizes are performed. The maximum slider acceleration, associated with the impact acceleration, is used as a measure of the impact severity. The obtained results demonstrate the dynamical behavior of a multibody mechanical system with a clearance joint. Finally, the correlation between the numerical and experimental results is presented and discussed leading to validated models of clearance revolute joints.     

The nonlinear vibration analysis of a clamped-clamped beam by a reduced multibody method

The nonlinear response characteristics for a dynamic system with a geometric nonlinearity is examined using a multibody dynamics method. The planar system is an initially straight clamped-clamped beam subject to high frequency excitation in the vicinity of its third natural mode. The model includes a pre-applied static axial load, linear bending stiffness and a cubic in-plane stretching force. Constrained flexibility is applied to a multibody method that lumps the beam into N elements for three substructures subjected to the nonlinear partial differential equation of motion and N-1 linear modal constraints. This procedure is verified by d'Alembert's principle and leads to a discrete form of Galerkin's method. A finite difference scheme models the elastic forces. The beam is tuned by the axial force to obtain fourth order internal resonance that demonstrates bimodal and trimodal responses in agreement with low and moderate excitation test results. The continuous Galerkin method is shown to generate results conflicting with the test and multibody method. A new checking function based on Gauss' principle of least constraint is applied to the beam to minimize modal constraint error.     

Nonlinear vibration of a rotating laminated composite circular cylindrical shell: traveling wave vibration

In this paper, the large-amplitude (geometrically nonlinear) vibrations of rotating, laminated composite circular cylindrical shells subjected to radial harmonic excitation in the neighborhood of the lowest resonances are investigated. Nonlinearities due to large-amplitude shell motion are considered using the Donnell’s nonlinear shallow-shell theory, with account taken of the effect of viscous structure damping. The dynamic Young’s modulus which varies with vibrational frequency of the laminated composite shell is considered. An improved nonlinear model, which needs not to introduce the Airy stress function, is employed to study the nonlinear forced vibrations of the present shells. The system is discretized by Galerkin’s method while a model involving two degrees of freedom, allowing for the traveling wave response of the shell, is adopted. The method of harmonic balance is applied to study the forced vibration responses of the two-degrees-of-freedom system. The stability of analytical steady-state solutions is analyzed. Results obtained with analytical method are compared with numerical simulation. The agreement between them bespeaks the validity of the method developed in this paper. The effects of rotating speed and some other parameters on the nonlinear dynamic response of the system are also investigated.     

Nonlinear vibration isolation of a viscoelastic beam

In this paper, the transmissibility of a viscoelastic beam supported by vertical springs is defined by proposing a new vertical elastic support boundary. By contrasting with the viscoelastic beam with rigid vertical supports and the rigid rod with vertical elastic support ends, the necessity of the transmissibility of an elastic structure with vertical elastic supports is proved. In order to approximately solve the steady-state responses of the nonlinear transverse vibration of the viscoelastic beam under periodic excitation, the harmonic balance method in conjunction with the pseudo arc-length method is adopted. The numerical results are calculated to confirm the approximate analytic results. The comparison between the rigid rod and the elastic beam shows that neglecting the bending vibration of the structures will underestimate the frequency range in which the elastic support produces an effective vibration isolation. On the other hand, the comparison between the rigid support and the spring support demonstrates that ignoring the elasticity of the support ends will create a false understanding of the force transmission of elastic structures. In general, this paper presents the necessity of studying the force transmission of elastic structures with elastic supports. Moreover, this paper will become the beginning of the study of the vibration isolation of the elastic structure.     

Nonlinear vibration of beamplates with a delamination

The problem of beam-plates with a delamination located at an arbitrary site undergoing non-linear free vibration without damp is investigated. For this problem, nonlinear governing equations as well as the continuity, equilibrium and compatibility conditions are established. The Galerkin method and harmonic balance method are employed to find solutions. Finally, in some examples amplitude-frequency curves of the delaminated structure are presented in order to reveal some special dynamic features. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 19872024).     

Modeling and analysis of sliding joints with clearances in flexible multibody systems

The modeling of the sliding joint with clearance between a flexible beam and a rigid hole is investigated in this paper. The flexible beam is discretized using the three-dimensional curved Euler–Bernoulli beam element of the Absolute Nodal Coordinate Formulation, while the motion of the rigid hole is described by the Cartesian coordinates. Moreover, the cross sections of both the flexible beam and the rigid hole are assumed to be circular. The existing joints with clearances are mainly rigid joints with small clearances, and the contact detection algorithm adopted can solve only one pair of potential contact points within one section. In order to model the contact problem in the sliding joint with clearance, a new contact detection method based on the intersection of the rigid hole’s cross section and the flexible beam is proposed, which yields a two-dimensional contact detection problem. Based on the common-normal concept, the ellipse–circle contact detection problem within the hole’s cross section can be solved. The potential contact point on the hole’s cross section will be determined, and the closest point projection on the beam’s neutral axis can be defined further. The proposed contact detection method can deal with the sliding joint with large clearance and the multiple-point contact problem within one section. In addition, the penalty method is adopted to model the frictionless contact between the flexible beam and the rigid hole. Finally, two numerical examples about sliding joints with clearances, one with an initially curved beam under gravity and the other with a straight beam under zero gravity, are presented to demonstrate the influence of the clearance of sliding joint on the dynamic performance of flexible multibody systems.     

Modeling and simulation of planar multibody systems considering multiple revolute clearance joints

Nonlinear Dynamics - This paper presents a general procedure for dynamic modeling and simulation of planar multibody systems considering multiple revolute clearance joints. The normal contact force...     

刚体单元及其在多体系统动力学中的应用

多体系统动力学分析软件要求人工输入形状复杂物体的质量、质心位置和转动惯量,而实际上这些参量并不容易获得。本文探索了一种以组成物体的刚体单元为基本要素的新方法,并结合实际需要具体构造了刚性四面体和刚性梁单元。以刚体单元为基础并内嵌网格剖分模块的分析软件能够自动获得这些参数,从而具备处理任何复杂系统的能力。仿真结果的对比分...     

Nonlinear dynamics and performance analysis of modified snap-through vibration energy harvester with time-varying potential function

Vibration energy harvesting has emerged as a promising method to harvest energy for small-scale applications. Enhancing the performance of a vibration energy harvester(VEH) incorporating nonlinear techniques, for example, the snap-through VEH with geometric non-linearity, has gained attention in recent years. A conventional snap-through VEH is a bi-stable system with a time-invariant potential function, which was investigated extensively in the past. In this work, a modified snap-through VEH wit...     

Modeling joints with clearance and friction in multibody dynamic simulation of automotive differentials

Defects in kinematic joints can sometimes highly influence the simulation response of the whole multibody system within which these joints are included. For instance, the clearance, the friction, the lubrication and the flexibility affect the transient behaviour, reduce the component life and produce noise and vibration for classical joints such as prismatics, cylindrics or universal joints. In this work, a new 3D cylindrical joint model which accounts for the clearance, the misalignment and the friction is presented. This formulation has been used to represent the link between the planet gears and the planet carrier in an automotive differential model.