Contribution to the experimental and theoretical characterization of nonlinear vibration isolator

Abstract

ABSTRACT: The fundamental contribution of this doctoral thesis is the development of a new methodology for the characterization of the nonlinear behavior and the identification of unknown parameters of a commercial vibration isolator. The óbjective of this method is to define a mathematical model to provide a better understanding of the real system characterization. The developed model consists on predicting the response of the isolator under different working conditions. The studied metal mesh isolator essentially consist of a cushion of stainless steel, woven using a knitting machine, rolled and/or pressed into the required geometric shape. Experiment study was conducted to investigate the effects of the influencing parameters like the relative density and the influence of the working conditions including the pre-compression, the excitation level and the normal/lateral excitation direction. Special focus has been also dedicated to establish the thermo-mechanical behavior throughout experimental tests carried out in the climatic chamber.