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NASA NTRS2009

Synthesis and Control of Flexible Systems with Component-Level Uncertainties

An efficient and computationally robust method for synthesis of component dynamics is developed. The method defines the interface forces/moments as feasible vectors in transformed coordinates to ensure that connectivity requirements of the combined structure are met. The synthesized system is then defined in a transformed set of feasible coordinates. The simplicity of form is exploited to effectively deal with modeling parametric and non-parametric uncertainties at the substructure level. Uncertainty models of reasonable size and complexity are synthesized for the combined structure from those in the substructure models. In particular, we address frequency and damping uncertainties at the component level. The approach first considers the robustness of synthesized flexible systems. It is then extended to deal with non-synthesized dynamic models with component-level uncertainties by projecting uncertainties to the system level. A numerical example is given to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach.

Maghami, Peiman G.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Decentralized control of large flexible structures by joint decoupling

A decentralized control design method is presented for large complex flexible structures by using the idea of joint decoupling. The derivation is based on a coupled substructure state-space model, which is obtained from enforcing conditions of interface compatibility and equilibrium to the substructure state-space models. It is shown that by restricting the control law to be localized state feedback and by setting the joint actuator input commands to decouple joint 'degrees of freedom' (dof) from interior dof, the global structure control design problem can be decomposed into several substructure control design problems. The substructure control gains and substructure observers are designed based on modified substructure state-space models. The controllers produced by the proposed method can operate successfully at the individual substructure level as well as at the global structure level. Therefore, not only control design but also control implementation is decentralized. Stability and performance requirement of the closed-loop system can be achieved by using any existing state feedback control design method. A two-component mass-spring damper system and a three-truss structure are used as examples to demonstrate the proposed method.

Su, Tzu-Jeng↗

NASA NTRS1977

A special purpose symbolic manipulation program for the derivation of the equations of motion for large flexible structures

This paper outlines a computer program especially tailored to the task of deriving explicit equations of motion for structures with point-connected substructures. The special purpose program is written in FORTRAN and is designed for performing the specific algebraic operations encountered in the derivation of explicit equations of motion. The derivation is by the Lagrangian approach. Using an orderly kinematical procedure and a discretization and/or truncation scheme, it is possible to write the kinetic and potential energy of each substructure in a compact vector-matrix form. Then, if each element of the matrices and vectors encountered in the kinetic and potential energy is a known algebraic expression, the computer program performs the necessary operations to evaluate the kinetic and potential energy of the system explicitly. Lagrange's equations for small motions about equilibrium can be deduced directly from the explicit form of the system kinetic and potential energy.

Hale, A. L.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Cross-surface interface element for coupling built-up structural subdomains

A new finite element for coupling built-up shell substructures is presented. The present work extends the hybrid variational formulation of the interface element developed by Aminpour and Ransom to permit coupling between two intersecting substructures. Designed for the assembly of independently built-up finite element models, this technique provides a level of modeling flexibility previously unavailable.

Davila, C. G.↗

NASA NTRS1984

NASTRAN/FLEXSTAB procedure for static aeroelastic analysis

Presented is a procedure for using the FLEXSTAB External Structural Influence Coefficients (ESIC) computer program to produce the structural data necessary for the FLEXSTAB Stability Derivatives and Static Stability (SD&SS) program. The SD&SS program computes trim state, stability derivatives, and pressure and deflection data for a flexible airplane having a plane of symmetry. The procedure used a NASTRAN finite-element structural model as the source of structural data in the form of flexibility matrices. Selection of a set of degrees of freedom, definition of structural nodes and panels, reordering and reformatting of the flexibility matrix, and redistribution of existing point mass data are among the topics discussed. Also discussed are boundary conditions and the NASTRAN substructuring technique.

Schuster, L. S.↗

NASA NTRS1989

NASA CSI suspension methods overview

New suspension techniques will be necesary for ground testing the flexible spacecraft anticipated in NASA's future space activity. The most complex spacecraft involve nonlinear maneuvering (i.e., large angle slewing) with articulating substructures such as remote manipulating systems. The NASA control-structure interaction (CSI) ground test method team has begun researching and developing methodology to suspend the future class of spacecraft. This overview describes the work completed thus far. The research objective and technical approach will be presented first. Second, will be a suspension device overview followed by an assessment of existing hardware. Two different mechanical zero-spring-rate mechanisms will be compared for optimal performance. Next, will be a description of how existing hardware can be evolved to meet more general suspension requirements. A comparison of suspending articulating structures overhead vs underneath will follow. After a few experimental results from the zero-spring-rate mechanism/air suspension cart will be concluding remarks and future work.

Woodard, Stanley E.↗

NASA NTRS1982

A NASTRAN model of a large flexible swing-wing bomber. Volume 3: NASTRAN model development-wing structure

The NASTRAN model plan for the wing structure was expanded in detail to generate the NASTRAN model for this substructure. The grid point coordinates were coded for each element. The material properties and sizing data for each element were specified. The wing substructure model was thoroughly checked out for continuity, connectivity, and constraints. This substructure was processed for structural influence coefficients (SIC) point loadings and the deflections were compared to those computed for the aircraft detail model. Finally, a demonstration and validation processing of this substructure was accomplished using the NASTRAN finite element program. The bulk data deck, stiffness matrices, and SIC output data were delivered.

Mock, W. D.↗

NASA NTRS1982

A NASTRAN model of a large flexible swing-wing bomber. Volume 4: NASTRAN model development-fuselage structure

The NASTRAN model plan for the fuselage structure was expanded in detail to generate the NASTRAN model for this substructure. The grid point coordinates were coded for each element. The material properties and sizing data for each element were specified. The fuselage substructure model was thoroughly checked out for continuity, connectivity, and constraints. This substructure was processed for structural influence coefficients (SIC) point loadings and the deflections were compared to those computed for the aircraft detail model. Finally, a demonstration and validation processing of this substructure was accomplished using the NASTRAN finite element program. The bulk data deck, stiffness matrices, and SIC output data were delivered.

Mock, W. D.↗

NASA NTRS1982

A NASTRAN model of a large flexible swing-wing bomber. Volume 5: NASTRAN model development-fairing structure

The NASTRAN model plan for the fairing structure was expanded in detail to generate the NASTRAN model of this substructure. The grid point coordinates, element definitions, material properties, and sizing data for each element were specified. The fairing model was thoroughly checked out for continuity, connectivity, and constraints. The substructure was processed for structural influence coefficients (SIC) point loadings to determine the deflection characteristics of the fairing model. Finally, a demonstration and validation processing of this substructure was accomplished using the NASTRAN finite element program. The bulk data deck, stiffness matrices, and SIC output data were delivered.

Mock, W. D.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Development and analysis of the learjet 54/55 fuselage NASTRAN model using substructure techniques

Development and analysis of the Learjet 54/55 fuselage NASTRAN model is presented. This structure was broken down into several substructures to make the modeling and analysis effort more manageable. Since the geometry was fairly complex in some areas and in order to provide flexibility for future configuration studies, a series of local coordinate systems were used to describe the model. This work was accomplished using several different computer systems, the more recent of which were connected by a high speed data communications lines to perform the tasks of model generation and NASTRAN analysis.

Boroughs, R. R.↗

NASA NTRS1971

Viscoelastic cushion for patient support

Flexible container, filled with liquid, provides supportive device which conforms to patient's anatomy. Uniform cushion pressure prevents formation of decubitus ulcers, while the porous sponge substructure damps fluid movement through cushion response so that patient is not dumped when his weight shifts.

Sauers, D. G.↗

NASA NTRS1982

A NASTRAN model of a large flexible swing-wing bomber. Volume 2: NASTRAN model development-horizontal stabilzer, vertical stabilizer and nacelle structures

The NASTRAN model plans for the horizontal stabilizer, vertical stabilizer, and nacelle structure were expanded in detail to generate the NASTRAN model for each of these substructures. The grid point coordinates were coded for each element. The material properties and sizing data for each element were specified. Each substructure model was thoroughly checked out for continuity, connectivity, and constraints. These substructures were processed for structural influence coefficients (SIC) point loadings and the deflections were compared to those computed for the aircraft detail models. Finally, a demonstration and validation processing of these substructures was accomplished using the NASTRAN finite element program installed at NASA/DFRC facility.

Mock, W. D.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Guideline For Design Of Adaptive Structures

Guideline for design of adaptive structures specifies active members should be located at positions of maximum strain energy. Equations of motion of flexible structures formulated in terms of kinetic energies, strain energies, and direct measurements of forces. Maintaining precise dimensional control during assembly essential to assembly without large external loads or to prevent jamming of substructure preventing successful deployment. Active members used to prevent "binding" during deployment of structure. Then structure adjusted to precision shape requirement and adjusted during operation as required.

Utku, Senol↗

NASA NTRS1992

Dynamic modeling and control of multibody mechanical systems which are structurally flexible

This paper concerns the dynamic modeling and control of multibody, open-chained, structurally flexible, mechanical systems where the bodies are connected by revolute joints. The equations of motion are formulated based on a matrix form of Lagrange's equations for inertial quasi-coordinates. Each body is treated as a substructure of the system. For the purposes of simulation and control, the equations of motion are separated into two sets of equations using a perturbation approach: one to describe large rigid-body motions of the articulated system and the other to describe small linear motions of the bodies about the large motions. A biologically natural control strategy is used for vibration suppression and tracking the prescribed motion.

Quinn, R. D.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Decentralized control of large flexible structures by joint decoupling

This paper presents a novel method to design decentralized controllers for large complex flexible structures by using the idea of joint decoupling. Decoupling of joint degrees of freedom from the interior degrees of freedom is achieved by setting the joint actuator commands to cancel the internal forces exerting on the joint degrees of freedom. By doing so, the interactions between substructures are eliminated. The global structure control design problem is then decomposed into several substructure control design problems. Control commands for interior actuators are set to be localized state feedback using decentralized observers for state estimation. The proposed decentralized controllers can operate successfully at the individual substructure level as well as at the global structure level. Not only control design but also control implementation is decentralized. A two-component mass-spring-damper system is used as an example to demonstrate the proposed method.

LINEAR QUADRATIC REGULATOR MET↗

NASA NTRS1991

Hybrid CMS methods with model reduction for assembly of structures

Future on-orbit structures will be designed and built in several stages, each with specific control requirements. Therefore there must be a methodology which can predict the dynamic characteristics of the assembled structure, based on the dynamic characteristics of the subassemblies and their interfaces. The methodology developed by CSC to address this issue is Hybrid Component Mode Synthesis (HCMS). HCMS distinguishes itself from standard component mode synthesis algorithms in the following features: (1) it does not require the subcomponents to have displacement compatible models, which makes it ideal for analyzing the deployment of heterogeneous flexible multibody systems, (2) it incorporates a second-level model reduction scheme at the interface, which makes it much faster than other algorithms and therefore suitable for control purposes, and (3) it does answer specific questions such as 'how does the global fundamental frequency vary if I change the physical parameters of substructure k by a specified amount?'. Because it is based on an energy principle rather than displacement compatibility, this methodology can also help the designer to define an assembly process. Current and future efforts are devoted to applying the HCMS method to design and analyze docking and berthing procedures in orbital construction.

Farhat, Charbel↗

NASA NTRS1990

Application of Lanczos vectors to control design of flexible structures

This report covers research conducted during the first year of the two-year grant. The research, entitled 'Application of Lanczos Vectors to Control Design of Flexible Structures' concerns various ways to obtain reduced-order mathematical models for use in dynamic response analyses and in control design studies. This report summarizes research described in several reports and papers that were written under this contract. Extended abstracts are presented for technical papers covering the following topics: controller reduction by preserving impulse response energy; substructuring decomposition and controller synthesis; model reduction methods for structural control design; and recent literature on structural modeling, identification, and analysis.

Craig, Roy R., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Advances and trends in structures and dynamics; Proceedings of the Symposium, Washington, DC, October 22-25, 1984

Among the topics discussed are developments in structural engineering hardware and software, computation for fracture mechanics, trends in numerical analysis and parallel algorithms, mechanics of materials, advances in finite element methods, composite materials and structures, determinations of random motion and dynamic response, optimization theory, automotive tire modeling methods and contact problems, the damping and control of aircraft structures, and advanced structural applications. Specific topics covered include structural design expert systems, the evaluation of finite element system architectures, systolic arrays for finite element analyses, nonlinear finite element computations, hierarchical boundary elements, adaptive substructuring techniques in elastoplastic finite element analyses, automatic tracking of crack propagation, a theory of rate-dependent plasticity, the torsional stability of nonlinear eccentric structures, a computation method for fluid-structure interaction, the seismic analysis of three-dimensional soil-structure interaction, a stress analysis for a composite sandwich panel, toughness criterion identification for unidirectional composite laminates, the modeling of submerged cable dynamics, and damping synthesis for flexible spacecraft structures.

Noor, A. K.↗