Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “damping controller”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 163 records · Page 9
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1989

Real-time flight test analysis and display techniques for the X-29A aircraft

The X-29A advanced technology demonstrator flight envelope expansion program and the subsequent flight research phase gave impetus to the development of several innovative real-time analysis and display techniques. These new techniques produced significant improvements in flight test productivity, flight research capabilities, and flight safety. These techniques include real-time measurement and display of in-flight structural loads, dynamic structural mode frequency and damping, flight control system dynamic stability and control response, aeroperformance drag polars, and aircraft specific excess power. Several of these analysis techniques also provided for direct comparisons of flight-measured results with analytical predictions. The aeroperformance technique was made possible by the concurrent development of a new simplified in-flight net thrust computation method. To achieve these levels of on-line flight test analysis, integration of ground and airborne systems was required. The capability of NASA Ames Research Center, Dryden Flight Research Facility's Western Aeronautical Test Range was a key factor to enable implementation of these methods.

Hicks, John W.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Adaptive structures in space

Future NASA missions will need large (20 to 100m) structural systems with precision position (few microns to submicron) requirements. Data are presented which indicate the technology deficiencies of previous programs and analyses in current state-of-the-art structural design approaches, analytical prediction capabilities, control of structure capabilities, and ground test technologies to meet the performance requirements of future large precision structural systems. Test results on laboratory truss structures that demonstrate static displacement control, active damping, and on-orbit system identification are described. It is shown that for large precision structures, adaptive structures provide not only a means to achieve the precision and characteristics required in space, but can also significantly alleviate the ground test requirements for flight-validating the hardware.

Wada, B. K.↗
NASA NTRS1956

Some Effects of Roll Rate on the Longitudinal Stability Characteristics of a Cruciform Missile Configuration as Determined from Flight Test for a Mach Number Range of 1.1. to 1.8

A model of a cruciform missile configuration having a low-aspect-ratio wing equipped with flap-type controls was flight tested in order to determine stability and control characteristics while rolling at about 5 radians per second. Comparison is made with results from a similar model which rolled at a much lower rate. Results showed that, if the ratio of roll rate to natural circular frequency in pitch is not greater than about 0.3, the motion following a step disturbance in pitch essentially remains in a plane in space. The slope of normal- force coefficient against angle of attack C(sub N(sub alpha)) was the same as for the slowly rolling model at 0 degrees control deflection but C(sub N(sub alpha)) was much higher for the faster rolling model at about 5 degrees control deflection. The slope of pitching-moment coefficient against angle of attack C(sub m(sub alpha)) as determined from the model period of oscillation was the same for both models at 0 degrees control deflection but was lower for the faster rolling model at about 5 degrees control deflection. Damping data for the faster rolling model showed considerably more scatter than for the slowly rolling model.

Lundstrom, Reginald R↗
NASA NTRS2005

Prototype Variable-Area Exhaust Nozzle Designed

Ongoing research in NASA Glenn Research Center s Structural Mechanics and Dynamics Branch to develop smart materials technologies for adaptive aeropropulsion components has resulted in the design of a prototype variable-area exhaust nozzle (see the preceding photograph). The novel design exploits the potential of smart materials to improve the performance of existing fixed-area exhaust nozzles by introducing new capabilities for adaptive shape control, vibration damping, and flow manipulation. The design utilizes two different smart materials: shape memory alloy wires as actuators and magnetorheological fluids as damper locks.

Lee, Ho-Jun↗
NASA NTRS2003

Experimental and Analytical Studies of Smart Morphing Structures Being Conducted

The development of morphing aeropropulsion structural components offers the potential to significantly improve the performance of existing aircraft engines through the introduction of new inherent capabilities for shape control, vibration damping, noise reduction, health monitoring, and flow manipulation. One of the key factors in the successful development of morphing structures is the maturation of smart materials technologies.

Lee, Ho-Jun↗
NASA NTRS2011

A Piezoelectric PZT Ceramic Mulitlayer Stack for Energy Harvesting Under Dynamic Forces

Piezoelectric energy harvesting transducers (PEHTs) are commonly used in motion/vibration energy scavenging devices. To date, most researchers have focused on energy harvesting at narrow bandwidths around the mechanical resonance frequency, and most piezoelectric harvesting devices reported in the literature have very low effective piezoelectric coefficient (d(sub eff)) (< 10(exp 4) pC/N). For instance, more than 80% of PEHT related papers are on transverse "31" mode cantilever beam type PEHTs (CBPEHTs) having piezoelectric coefficients of about 100 pC/N. The level of harvested electrical power for CBPEHTs is on the order of microW even at resonance mode. In order to harvest more electrical energy across broader bandwidth, high effective piezoelectric coefficient structures are needed. In this study, we investigate a "33" longitudinal mode, piezoelectric PZT ceramic multilayer stack (PZT-Stack) with high effective piezoelectric coefficient for high-performance PEHTs. The PZT-Stack is composed of 300 layers of 0.1 mm thick PZT plates, with overall dimensions of 32.4 mm X 7.0 mm X 7.0 mm. Experiments were carried out with dynamic forces in a broad bandwidth ranging from 0.5 Hz to 25 kHz. The measured results show that the effective piezoelectric coefficient of the PZT-stack is about 1 X 10(exp 5) pC/N at off-resonance frequencies and 1.39 X 10(exp 6) pC/N at resonance, which is order of magnitude larger than that of traditional PEHTs. The effective piezoelectric coefficients (d(sub eff)) do not change significantly with applied dynamic forces having root mean square (RMS) values ranging from 1 N to 40 N. In resonance mode, 231 mW of electrical power was harvested at 2479 Hz with a dynamic force of 11.6 N(sub rms), and 7.6 mW of electrical power was generated at a frequency of 2114 Hz with 1 N(sub rms) dynamic force. In off-resonance mode, an electrical power of 18.7 mW was obtained at 680 Hz with a 40 N(sub rms) dynamic force. A theoretical model of energy harvesting for the PZT-Stack is established. The modeled results matched well with experimental measurements. This study demonstrated that high effective piezoelectric coefficient structures enable PEHTs to harvest more electrical energy from mechanical vibrations or motions, suggesting an effective design for high-performance low-footprint PEHTs with potential applications in military, aerospace, and portable electronics. In addition, this study provides a route for using piezoelectric multilayer stacks for active or semi-active adaptive control to damp, harvest or transform unwanted dynamic vibrations into useful electrical energy.

Xu, Tian-Bing↗
NASA NTRS1981

Control of large space structures using Annual Momentum Control Devices (AMCD's)

A controller design approach for large space structures, which proposes the use of several Annular Momentum Control Devices (AMCD's) for structural damping enhancement, and either torque actuators of AMCD's for primary attitude control, was investigated. The damping enhancement controller makes the system asymptotically stable under certain relatively simple conditions. The closed-loop stability of the system with the primary attitude controller as well as the overall controller was established. It is shown that the same AMCD's can be used for the actuation of the damping enhancement controller and the primary attitude controller. Numerical results were obtained for a finite-element model of a large, thin, completely free, flat aluminum plate.

Joshi, S. M.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Variable-Friction Secondary Face Seals

Feedback-controlled friction or damping suppresses vibrations. Variable-friction secondary seal conceived to control vibration and stability of primary seal ring over wide range of conditions. By varying friction force or damping applied to primary seal ring, vibration controlled to provide stable operation. Advantages of "variablefriction secondary seal": face-seal stability controlled as function of primary-ring vibration amplitudes, and also friction remotely changed to achieve acceptable vibration amplitudes for large range of seal-operating conditions without compromising secondary-seal performance. Concept also useful in seal testing in which dynamic stability of face seals is under evaluation.

Dirusso, E.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Decentralized Control of Sound Radiation using a High-Authority/Low-Authority Control Strategy with Anisotropic Actuators

This paper describes a combined control strategy designed to reduce sound radiation from stiffened aircraft-style panels. The control architecture uses robust active damping in addition to high-authority linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) control. Active damping is achieved using direct velocity feedback with triangularly shaped anisotropic actuators and point velocity sensors. While active damping is simple and robust, stability is guaranteed at the expense of performance. Therefore the approach is often referred to as low-authority control. In contrast, LQG control strategies can achieve substantial reductions in sound radiation. Unfortunately, the unmodeled interaction between neighboring control units can destabilize decentralized control systems. Numerical simulations show that combining active damping and decentralized LQG control can be beneficial. In particular, augmenting the in-bandwidth damping supplements the performance of the LQG control strategy and reduces the destabilizing interaction between neighboring control units.

Schiller, Noah H.↗
NASA NTRS1985

A design technique for determining actuator gains in spacecraft vibration control

A design procedure is described which determines the gains of a diagonal damping matrix to control the vibrations of a flexible structure with application to orbiting spacecraft. The procedure is based on minimizing the energy dissipated by control actuators using nonlinear mathematical programming. Each damping gain is assumed to be an active viscous damper and the design process is formulated so that the force or torque output of the actuator does not exceed a specified value. The response of the structure at some specified time after the termination of the disturbance is constrained to be less than some prescribed value based upon spacecraft mission performance requirements. A grillage example is used to demonstrate the design process for determining gains for two representative cases. Resulting designs are verified by a finite element analysis of the structure augmented by the control actuators.

Horner, G. C.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Damped Windows for Aircraft Interior Noise Control

Windows are a significant path for structure-borne and air-borne noise transmission into aircraft. To improve the acoustical performance, damped windows were fabricated using two or three layers of plexiglas with transparent viscoelastic damping material sandwiched between the layers. In this paper, numerical and experimental results are used to evaluate the acoustic benefits of damped windows. Tests were performed in the Structural Acoustic Loads and Transmission Facility at NASA Langley Research Center to measure the transmission loss for diffuse acoustic excitation and radiated sound power for point force excitation. Comparisons between uniform and damped plexiglas windows showed increased transmission loss of 6 dB at the first natural frequency, 6 dB at coincidence, and 4.5 dB over a 50 to 4k Hz range. Radiated sound power was reduced up to 7 dB at the lower natural frequencies and 3.7 dB over a 1000 Hz bandwidth. Numerical models are presented for the prediction of radiated sound power for point force excitation and transmission loss for diffuse acoustic excitation. Radiated sound power and transmission loss predictions are in good agreement with experimental data. A parametric study is presented that evaluates the optimum configuration of the damped plexiglas windows for reducing the radiated sound power.

Buehrle, Ralph D.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Handling Qualities Evaluations of Low Complexity Model Reference Adaptive Controllers for Reduced Pitch and Roll Damping Scenarios

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) researchers have conducted a series of flight experiments designed to study the effects of varying levels of adaptive controller complexity on the performance and handling qualities of an aircraft under various simulated failure or damage conditions. A baseline, nonlinear dynamic inversion controller was augmented with three variations of a model reference adaptive control design. The simplest design consisted of a single adaptive parameter in each of the pitch and roll axes computed using a basic gradient-based update law. A second design was built upon the first by increasing the complexity of the update law. The third and most complex design added an additional adaptive parameter to each axis. Flight tests were conducted using NASA s Full-scale Advanced Systems Testbed, a highly modified F-18 aircraft that contains a research flight control system capable of housing advanced flight controls experiments. Each controller was evaluated against a suite of simulated failures and damage ranging from destabilization of the pitch and roll axes to significant coupling between the axes. Two pilots evaluated the three adaptive controllers as well as the non-adaptive baseline controller in a variety of dynamic maneuvers and precision flying tasks designed to uncover potential deficiencies in the handling qualities of the aircraft, and adverse interactions between the pilot and the adaptive controllers. The work was completed as part of the Integrated Resilient Aircraft Control Project under NASA s Aviation Safety Program.

Hanson, Curt↗
NASA NTRS2011

Shunted Piezoelectric Vibration Damping Analysis Including Centrifugal Loading Effects

Excessive vibration of turbomachinery blades causes high cycle fatigue problems which require damping treatments to mitigate vibration levels. One method is the use of piezoelectric materials as passive or active dampers. Based on the technical challenges and requirements learned from previous turbomachinery rotor blades research, an effort has been made to investigate the effectiveness of a shunted piezoelectric for the turbomachinery rotor blades vibration control, specifically for a condition with centrifugal rotation. While ample research has been performed on the use of a piezoelectric material with electric circuits to attempt to control the structural vibration damping, very little study has been done regarding rotational effects. The present study attempts to fill this void. Specifically, the objectives of this study are: (a) to create and analyze finite element models for harmonic forced response vibration analysis coupled with shunted piezoelectric circuits for engine blade operational conditions, (b) to validate the experimental test approaches with numerical results and vice versa, and (c) to establish a numerical modeling capability for vibration control using shunted piezoelectric circuits under rotation. Study has focused on a resonant damping control using shunted piezoelectric patches on plate specimens. Tests and analyses were performed for both non-spinning and spinning conditions. The finite element (FE) shunted piezoelectric circuit damping simulations were performed using the ANSYS Multiphysics code for the resistive and inductive circuit piezoelectric simulations of both conditions. The FE results showed a good correlation with experimental test results. Tests and analyses of shunted piezoelectric damping control, demonstrating with plate specimens, show a great potential to reduce blade vibrations under centrifugal loading.

Min, James B.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Active vibration control in microgravity environment

An active control process to reduce vibration transmitted from the Space Station structure to the vibration sensitive payload is evaluated. A low-friction air-bearing table is used to approximate zero gravity in the horizontal plane. An analog control system is described which activates calibrated air jets when displacement of the test mass is sensed. The air jet control system is found to introduce an effective damping factor in controlling the oscillatory response. The air-jet control system is designed such that the thrust force produces less than 10 to the -5th g acceleration of the payload. An analytical model has verified the amount of damping in addition to flow parameters such as the pressure drop across the valve and the air flow rate.

Gerhold, C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Control and Simulation of Space-Station Vibrations

Adaptive control system reduces effects of model uncertainties. Report outlines method for finite-element dynamic analysis of space station. Purpose is to determine periods and modes of oscillation of structure and to analyze effect of proposed adaptive control system to damp out unwanted vibrations. With simplifications proposed, finite-element simulations performed during dynamic event, like docking of Space Shuttle, and used to control vibration-damping actuators.

Ih, Che-Hang Charles↗
NASA NTRS2013

Experimental Comparison of two Active Vibration Control Approaches: Velocity Feedback and Negative Capacitance Shunt Damping

This paper outlines a direct, experimental comparison between two established active vibration control techniques. Active vibration control methods, many of which rely upon piezoelectric patches as actuators and/or sensors, have been widely studied, showing many advantages over passive techniques. However, few direct comparisons between different active vibration control methods have been made to determine the performance benefit of one method over another. For the comparison here, the first control method, velocity feedback, is implemented using four accelerometers that act as sensors along with an analog control circuit which drives a piezoelectric actuator. The second method, negative capacitance shunt damping, consists of a basic analog circuit which utilizes a single piezoelectric patch as both a sensor and actuator. Both of these control methods are implemented individually using the same piezoelectric actuator attached to a clamped Plexiglas window. To assess the performance of each control method, the spatially averaged velocity of the window is compared to an uncontrolled response.

Beck, Benjamin↗