Efficient integration of flexible multibody dynamics

The modelling of flexible multibody dynamics as finite dimensional Hamiltonian system subject to holonomic constraints constitutes a general framework for a unified treatment of rigid and elastic components. Internal constraints, which are associated with the kinematic assumptions of the underlying continuous theory, as well as external constraints, representing the interconnection of different bodies by joints, can be accounted for in a likewise systematic way. The discrete null space method developed in 0] provides an energy-momentum conserving integration scheme for the DAEs of motion of constrained mechanical systems. It relies on the elimination of the constraint forces from the discrete system along with a reparametrisation of the nodal unknowns. The resulting reduced scheme performs advantageously concerning different aspects: the constraints are fulfilled exactly, the condition number of the iteration matrix is independent of the time step and the dimension of the system is reduced to the minimal possible number saving computational costs. A six-body-linkage possessing a single degree of freedom is analysed as an example of a closed loop structure. (© 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)