Effect of the system imperfections on the dynamic response of a high-static-low-dynamic stiffness vibration isolator

The dynamic response of a high-static-low-dynamic stiffness (HSLDS) isolator formed by parallelly connecting a negative stiffness corrector which uses compressed Euler beams to a linear isolator is investigated in this study. Considering stiffness and load imperfections, the resonance frequency and response of the proposed isolator are obtained by employing harmonic balance method. The HSLDS isolator with quasi-zero stiffness characteristics can offer the lowest resonance frequency provided that there is only stiffness or load imperfection. If load imperfection always exists, there is no need to make the stiffness to zero since it cannot provide the lowest resonance frequency any longer. The reason for this unusual phenomenon is given. The dynamic response will exhibit softening, hardening, and softening-to-hardening characteristics, depending on the combined effect of load imperfection, stiffness imperfection, and excitation amplitude. In general, load imperfection makes the response exhibit softening characteristic and increasing stiffness imperfection will weak this effect. Increasing the excitation level will make the isolator undergo complex switch between different stiffness characteristics.