Vibration analysis of a wheel composed of a ring and a wheel-plate modelled as a three-parameter elastic foundation

The free in-plane vibrations of circular rings with wheel-plates as generalised elastic foundations are studied using analytical methods and numerical simulations. The three-parameter Winkler elastic layer is proposed as a mathematical model of the foundation. The effects of rotary inertia and shear deformation are included in the analytical model of the system. The motion equations of systems are derived on the basis of the thin ring theory and Timoshenko?s theory. The separation of variables method is used to find general solutions to the free vibrations. Elaborated analytical models are used to determine the natural frequencies and the natural mode shapes of vibrations of an arbitrarily chosen set of simplified models of aviation gears and railway wheels. The eigenvalue problem is formulated and solved by using a finite element representation for each simplified model. The results for these models are discussed and compared. The proposed solutions are verified by experimental investigation. It is important to note that the solutions proposed here could be useful to engineers dealing with the dynamics of aviation gears, railway wheels and other circular ring systems.