System Level Bench Test for Trailing Arm Strength Estimation

For suspension components, bench testing for strength is mostly accomplished at component level. However, replicating loading and boundary conditions at the component level in order to simulate the suspension system environment may be difficult. Because of this, the component's bench test failure mode may not be similar to its real life failure mode in vehicle environment. A suspension system level bench test eliminates most of the discrepancies between simulated component level and real life vehicle level environments resulting in higher quality bench tests yielding realistic test results. Here, a suspension level bench test to estimate the strength of its trailing arm link is presented. A suspension system level nonlinear finite element model was built and analyzed using ABAQUS software. The strength loading was applied at the wheel end. The analysis results along with the hardware test correlations are presented. The reasons why a system level test is superior to a component level one are also highlighted.

Engine Mount Optimization for Vibration Isolation in Motorcycles

This paper presents a comprehensive model to capture the dynamics of a motorcycle system in order to evaluate the quality of vibration isolation. The two main structural components in the motorcycle assembly - the frame and the swing-arm - are modeled using reduced order finite element models; the power-train assembly is modeled as a six degree-of-freedom (DOF) rigid body connected to the frame through the engine mounts and to the swing-arm through a shaft assembly. The engine mounts are modeled as tri-axial spring-damper systems. Models of the front-end assembly as well as front and rear tires are also included in the overall model. The complete vehicle model is used to solve the engine mount optimization problem so as to minimize the total force transmitted to the frame while meeting packaging and other side constraints. The mount system parameters - stiffness, position and orientation vectors - are used as design variables for the optimization problem. The imposed loads include forces and moments due to engine imbalance as well as loads transmitted due to irregularities in the road surface through the tire patch.

Static Friction Models for Vehicle Simulation Study

The history of the challenge of friction modeling is briefly reviewed. Then this paper focuses on the modeling and simulation study of the friction related dynamics in the Simulink® environment, because Matlab®/Simulink® are popular engineering software tools for both industry and academia. Matlab® and Simulink® are the proprietary products of MathWorks, Inc. In this paper, the static friction models are studied through Simulink® by applying fixed and variable step sizes. The comparison shows that the static Karnopp model is not only numerically tractable but also can be inclusive of the fundamental friction characteristics of both stick slip and correct friction predictions. Finally this paper presents an improved Karnopp model for clutch modeling with the use of Simulink®, and the simulation shows that this model is computationally tractable with smooth dynamics.

The Stick Motion of a Harmonically Excited, Friction-Induced Oscillator on a Sinusoidally Traveling Surface

In this paper, the methodology is presented through investigation of a periodically, forced linear oscillator with dry friction, resting on a traveling surface varying with time. The switching conditions for stick motions in non-smooth dynamical systems are obtained. From defined generic mappings, the corresponding criteria for the stick motions are presented through the force product conditions. The analytical prediction of the onset and vanishing of the stick motions is illustrated. Finally, numerical simulations of stick motions are carried out to verify the analytical prediction. The achieved force criteria can be applied to the other dynamical systems with nonlinear friction forces possessing a CO - discontinuity.

The Nonlinear Internal Resonance Analysis of a Rotary Truncated Conical Shell

Truncated conical shell is an important structure that has been widely applied in many engineering fields. The present paper studies the internal dynamic properties of a truncated rotary conical shell with considerations of intercoupling the high and low order modals by utilizing Harmonic Balance Method. To disclosure the detailed intercoupling characteristics of high order modal and low order modal of the system, a truncated shallow shell is studied and the internal response properties of the system is investigated by using the Multiple Scale Method. Abundant dynamic characteristics are found in the research of this paper. It is found in the research of the paper that the high-order modals of rotating conical shells have significant effects to the amplitude and frequency of the shells.

Swing Reduction of Ropeway Carriers by Means of Two-Ball Rolling Type Damping Equipment

To enhance transport safety and reliability of ropeway systems, it is essential to reduce the swing of the carriers that results from wind, etc. As a means to lessen the swing of the carriers, we will propose damping equipment that uses two balls as the movable mass. We will also discuss the method for adjusting the design parameters for this equipment. Based on a simulation, we will determine the effect of this equipment. In addition, we will refer to the results of a model test to verify the effect of this damping equipment.

Vibration Characteristics of the Vocal Folds

The vibration characteristics of the vocal folds are investigated using a finite element model which incorporates the in-homogeneity and anisotropy of the materials and the irregularity of the geometry. The model employs the cover and body theory to build the structure of the vocal folds and implements measured viscoelastic properties of the mucosa and the transverse isotropic elastic properties of the muscles. It has the potential to simulate some vocal-fold disorders and determine the change in characteristics. To determine the oscillation characteristics of the folds, the eigenfrequency and eigenmodes of the finite element model are determined using the ABAQUS software. The model results compare well with some experiments performed on a silicon vocal fold. It is anticipated that the model will help to identify voice disorders such as vocal-fold paralysis and vocal-fold nodules.

Combined Effects of Stress Concentration and Fatigue on the Reliability of Notched Laminates

Composite laminates are used in structural applications such as aircraft wings and tail structures. Drilling holes and making cutouts in these laminates are unavoidable for practical reasons. As a result, stress concentration is introduced near the hole or cutout, and the load-bearing capacity of the structure is reduced. In addition, composite laminates used in aerospace applications are subjected to considerable fatigue loading due to service conditions. In composite laminates, fatigue causes reduction in stiffness and strength. The objective of the present work is to study the combined effect of stress concentration and fatigue on the composite laminate. Since composite laminate displays significant variation in material and strength properties, the stress distribution in the laminate is stochastic in nature. It is more appropriate to analyze the notched composite laminates using a stochastic approach and to design the laminate based on a reliability-based design approach. In the present work, such an approach is developed and the combined effect of stress concentration and fatigue on the reliability of the laminate is investigated.

Adaptive Sliding Mode Control of MEMS Vibrational Gyroscope

This paper presents a new sliding mode adaptive controller for MEMS z-axis gyroscope. The proposed adaptive sliding mode control algorithm can on-line estimate the component of the angular velocity vector, which is orthogonal to the plane of oscillation of the gyroscope (the z-axis) and the linear damping and stiffness model coefficients. The stability of the closed-loop system can be guaranteed with the proposed control strategy. The numerical simulation for MEMS Gyroscope is investigated to verify the effectiveness of the proposed adaptive sliding mode control scheme. It is shown that the proposed adaptive sliding mode control scheme offers several advantages such as on-line estimation of gyroscope parameters including angular rate and large robustness to parameter variations and external disturbance.

A Stress Analysis and Strength Evaluation of Scarf Adhesive Joints Subjected to Static Tensile Loading

Scarf adhesive joints used in practice. However, the stress distributions and the joints strengths have not yet been fully elucidate. Important issues are how to determine the scarf angle in adherend and how to determine the adhesive properties. In this study, the stress distributions in scarf adhesive joints under static tensile loadings are analyzed using three-dimensional finite-element calculations. In the FEM calculations, the effects of Young's modulus of the adhesive, adhesive thickness, scarf angle of the adherend on the stress distributions at the adhesive interfaces are examined. The maximum principal stresses were calculated at every element at the interfaces. As the results, it is found that the maximum value of the maximum principal stress occurs at the edge of the adhesive interfaces (z=0, 1/s=1). It is also observed that the maximum value of the stress is the smallest, when the scarf angle is 60 degree. In addition, the joint strength is estimated using the interface stress. For the verification of the FEM calculations, the experiments were carried out to measure the strengths and the strains in the joints under static tensile loadings using strain gauges. Fairly good agreements are observed between the numerical and the measured results concerning the joint strength and the strains.