Kinematics and Dynamics of Multibody Systems with Imperfect Joints


Book Description

This book presents suitable methodologies for the dynamic analysis of multibody mechanical systems with joints. It contains studies and case studies of real and imperfect joints. The book is intended for researchers, engineers, and graduate students in applied and computational mechanics.




Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Impact and Friction of Solids, Structures and Intelligent Machines


Book Description

This book deals with the dynamics of mechanical systems in presence of impact and friction. The contributors are an international group of engineers and scientists from industrial and academic institutions of more than 23 countries around the world concerned with the modeling, analysis, measurement and control of nonsmooth mechanical structures. Contact laws lead to mathematical models that are highly nonlinear and nonsmooth or discontinuous. Discontinuous and nonsmooth processes introduce problems with data processing techniques and analytical methods. Thanks to great advances in computer technology and computational analysis, as well as the introduction of new experimental devices such as the atomic-force microscope and the quartz-crystal-microbalance probe, the study of impact and friction ? one of the oldest problems in physics, is now in a phase of rapid and exciting development. The growing number of research breakthroughs have promoted the development of new technologies in the description and design of systems with impact and friction models to understand nature, structures, machines, transportation systems, and other processes. A fairly comprehensive picture of these new developments is presented in this book by researchers who are giving up-to-date accounts of the present state of the field in many aspects.The book is essential for introducing readers in mechanical engineering, material science, applied mathematics, aerospace engineering, ocean engineering, biomechanics, and civil engineering to recent developments in nonsmooth mechanics. It is also useful for self-study purposes by professionals and practitioners in the field.




Crashworthiness of Transportation Systems: Structural Impact and Occupant Protection


Book Description

A systematic treatment of current crashworthiness practice in the automotive, railroad and aircraft industries. Structural, exterior and interior design, occupant biomechanics, seat and restraint systems are dealt with, taking account of statistical data, current regulations and state-of-the-art design tool capabilities. Occupant kinematics and biomechanics are reviewed, leading to a basic understanding of human tolerance to impact and of the use of anthropometric test dummies and mathematical modelling techniques. Different types of restraining systems are described in terms of impact biomechanics. The material and structural behaviour of vehicle components is discussed in relation to crash testing. A variety of commonly used techniques for simulating occupants and structures are presented, in particular the use of multibody dynamics, finite element methods and simplified macro-elements, in the context of design tools of increasing complexity, which can be used to model both vehicles and occupants. Audience: An excellent reference for researchers, engineers, students and all other professionals involved in crashworthiness work.




Multibody Dynamics with Unilateral Contacts


Book Description

The volume introduces basic concepts necessary for a modern treatment of inequality problems in finite degree of freedom dynamics. Tools from convex analysis, by now well established in non-smooth mechanics, are used to formulate the constitutive equations and impact laws. The lectures cover a broad area of non-smooth dynamics from primal and dual energy functions in variational and differential form to application problems as chimney dampers or vibration conveyors. This includes frictional oscillations with bifurcation scenarios as well as analogies to small displacement quasi-static problems. The course is on an advanced level, designed primarily for postgraduate students, but should also be of value for scientists working on dynamic complementarity problems.




Stability and Convergence of Mechanical Systems with Unilateral Constraints


Book Description

While the stability theory for systems with bilateral constraints is a well-established field, this monograph represents a systematic study of mechanical systems with unilateral constraints, such as unilateral contact, impact and friction. Such unilateral constraints give rise to non-smooth dynamical models for which stability theory is developed in this work. The book will be of interest to those working in the field of non-smooth mechanics and dynamics.




Contact Force Models for Multibody Dynamics


Book Description

This book analyzes several compliant contact force models within the context of multibody dynamics, while also revisiting the main issues associated with fundamental contact mechanics. In particular, it presents various contact force models, from linear to nonlinear, from purely elastic to dissipative, and describes their parameters. Addressing the different numerical methods and algorithms for contact problems in multibody systems, the book describes the gross motion of multibody systems by using a two-dimensional formulation based on the absolute coordinates and employs different contact models to represent contact-impact events. Results for selected planar multibody mechanical systems are presented and utilized to discuss the main assumptions and procedures adopted throughout this work. The material provided here indicates that the prediction of the dynamic behavior of mechanical systems involving contact-impact strongly depends on the choice of contact force model. In short, the book provides a comprehensive resource for the multibody dynamics community and beyond on modeling contact forces and the dynamics of mechanical systems undergoing contact-impact events.




Impacts in Mechanical Systems


Book Description

This volume constitutes an advanced introduction to the field of analysis, modeling and numerical simulation of rigid body mechanical systems with unilateral constraints. The topics include Moreau's sweeping process, the numerical analysis of nonsmooth multibody systems with friction, the study of energetical restitution coefficients for elasto-plastic models, the study of stability and bifurcation in systems with impacts, and the development of a multiple impact rule for Newton's cradle and the simple rocking model. Combining pedagogical aspects with innovative approaches, this book will not only be of interest to researchers working actively in the field, but also to graduate students wishing to get acquainted with this field of research through lectures written at a level also accessible to nonspecialists.




New Approaches to Structural Mechanics, Shells and Biological Structures


Book Description

This Festschrift marks the retirement of Professor Chris Calladine, FRS after 42 years on the teaching staff of the Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge. It contains a series of papers contributed by his former students, colleagues, and friends. Chris Calladine's research has ranged very widely across the field of struc tural mechanics, with a particular focus on the plastic deformation of solids and structures, and the behaviour of thin-shell structures. His insightful books on Engineering Plasticity and Theory of Shell Structures have been appreciated by many generations of students at Cambridge and elsewhere. His scientific contri bution outside engineering, in molecular structures, is at least as significant, and he is unique among engineers in having co-authored a book on DNA. Also, he has been keenly interested in the research of many students and colleagues, and on many occasions his quick grasp and physical insight have helped a student, and sometimes a colleague, find the nub of the problem without unnecessary effort. Many of the papers contained in this volume gratefully acknowledge this generous contribution. We thank Professor G. M. l. Gladwell for reading through all of the contri butions, Mrs R. Baxter and Mrs o. Constantinides for help in preparing this volume, Godfrey Argent Studio for permission to reproduce Calladine's por trait for the Royal Society, and Dr A. Schouwenburg -from Kluwer- for his assistance. Horace R. Drew Sergio Pellegrino ix CHRIS CALLADINE SOME THOUGHTS ON RESEARCH c. R.




Computational Dynamics


Book Description

Computational Dynamics, 3rd edition, thoroughly revised and updated, provides logical coverage of both theory and numerical computation techniques for practical applications. The author introduces students to this advanced topic covering the concepts, definitions and techniques used in multi-body system dynamics including essential coverage of kinematics and dynamics of motion in three dimensions. He uses analytical tools including Lagrangian and Hamiltonian methods as well as Newton-Euler Equations. An educational version of multibody computer code is now included in this new edition www.wiley.com/go/shabana that can be used for instruction and demonstration of the theories and formulations presented in the book, and a new chapter is included to explain the use of this code in solving practical engineering problems. Most books treat the subject of dynamics from an analytical point of view, focusing on the techniques for analyzing the problems presented. This book is exceptional in that it covers the practical computational methods used to solve "real-world" problems. This makes it of particular interest not only for senior/ graduate courses in mechanical and aerospace engineering, but also to professional engineers. Modern and focused treatment of the mathematical techniques, physical theories and application of rigid body mechanics that emphasizes the fundamentals of the subject, stresses the importance of computational methods and offers a wide variety of examples. Each chapter features simple examples that show the main ideas and procedures, as well as straightforward problem sets that facilitate learning and help readers build problem-solving skills




Impacts in Mechanical Systems


Book Description

This volume constitutes an advanced introduction to the field of analysis, modeling and numerical simulation of rigid body mechanical systems with unilateral constraints. The topics include Moreau's sweeping process, the numerical analysis of nonsmooth multibody systems with friction, the study of energetical restitution coefficients for elasto-plastic models, the study of stability and bifurcation in systems with impacts, and the development of a multiple impact rule for Newton's cradle and the simple rocking model. Combining pedagogical aspects with innovative approaches, this book will not only be of interest to researchers working actively in the field, but also to graduate students wishing to get acquainted with this field of research through lectures written at a level also accessible to nonspecialists.