Adams/Vibration
Getting Started Using Adams/Vibration
16 Getting Started Using Adams/Vibration
Overview
Adams/Vibration, part of the MD Adams R3® suite of software, performs frequency-domain analyses.
Adams/Vibration is a plugin to the interface products Adams/Car, and Adams/View. It can also be used
standalone with an Adams/Solver model.
Using Adams/Vibration, you can study forced vibrations within your Adams models. You can also use
the results from Adams/Vibration in noise/vibration/harshness (NVH) studies to predict the impact of
vibrations in automobiles, trains, planes, and so on.
Adams/Vibration can run in two modes: interactive and batch. This guide focuses on using
Adams/Vibration in our Adams interface products, such as Adams/View (interactive mode). For
information on batch mode analysis, refer to the Adams/Vibration online help.
This guide includes the following sections:
• Introducing the Problem
• Building the Model
• Testing the Model
• Reviewing the Model
• Improving Your Design
• Optimizing the Model
15
Introducing the Problem
Overview
This tutorial teaches you how to use Adams/Vibration in Adams/View to perform a vibration analysis on
an Adams model.
In this tutorial, you will investigate the operation of a satellite before the deployment of the solar panels
and the separation of the satellite from the launch vehicle. You will investigate the launch vibration
environment and its effect on the various components of the satellite.
This chapter provides details about the model you will use, and the problem you will address. It includes
the following sections:
• What You’ll Solve
• What You Will Learn
• What You Will Create
This tutorial takes about two hours to complete.
17
Introducing the Problem
Test
Satellite
Payload
adapter
Launch
vehicle
22 Getting Started Using Adams/Vibration
15
Building the Model
Overview
In this section, you start with a full nonlinear Adams model and add input channels, output channels, and
vibration actuators to the model.
Completing this section involves the following:
• Starting Adams/View and Importing the Model
• Loading Adams/Vibration
• Simulating the Satellite Model
• Creating Input Channels
• Creating Output Channels
17
Building the Model
Note: On Windows, you may need to set the permissions to Full Control to edit the tutorial files.
2. Do either of the following depending on the platform on which you are running Adams/View:
• In UNIX, type the command to start the Adams Toolbar at the command prompt, and then
press Enter. Select the Adams/View tool .
• In Windows, from the Start menu, point to Programs, point to MSC.Software, point to MD
Adams R3, point to AView, and then select Adams - View.
The Welcome dialog box appears, in the Adams/View main window.
3. Select Import a File.
4. Select the Find Directory tool next to the Start in text box. This displays the Find Directory
dialog box.
Note: The Start in text box specifies the working directory that Adams/Vibration uses as the
default directory for reading and writing files.
Adams/View opens the satellite model and displays it, as shown in Figure 3.
Figure 1 Satellite
19
Building the Model
Loading Adams/Vibration
Because Adams/Vibration is a plugin to Adams/Car, Adams/Rail, and Adams/View, you need to load
Adams/Vibration when you use Adams/Vibration from within any of these products. If you’re creating
a new model, or importing a model that has no Adams/Vibration data associated with it, you will need
to load the Adams/Vibration plugin. If, however, you’re importing a model that already has
Adams/Vibration data, the plugin automatically loads when you open the model.
To load Adams/Vibration:
1. From the Tools menu, select Plugin Manager.
2. Select the Load checkbox next to Adams/Vibration.
3. Select OK.
Adams/View loads the Adams/Vibration plugin and displays the Vibration menu. If you receive
an error message, you might have a problem with your licensing. Contact your system
administrator or local Adams expert.
Remember, you only need to load Adams/Vibration when working with a new model. Once you
have an Adams/Vibration model, you do not have to load the product. It automatically loads when
you import your file.
To automatically load Adams/Vibration each time Adams/View starts up, in the Plugin Manager,
select the Load at Startup checkbox.
20 Getting Started Using Adams/Vibration
A vibration actuator applies force input or a displacement, velocity, or acceleration to vibrate the system.
A typical design specification may call for an input acceleration level of 0.2 g2/Hz when applied as a
PSD. For this problem, we will use an equivalent force input normalized to a value of 1, since we are
only interested in the relative accelerations at various frequencies.
You will create two vibration actuators that apply two orthogonal input forces that drive the system with
sine waves over the range of specified frequencies. The y input will drive the satellite in the vertical
direction. The x input will drive the satellite laterally.
Then, you will create a third actuator that applies a 1g vertical acceleration in the y-direction.
Finally, you will review the vibration actuator.
13. To create another input channel, in the Input Channel Name text box, enter .satellite.input_y.
14. Leave the default Force.
15. In the Input Marker text box, leave payload_adapter.reference_point.
16. Set Force Direction to Global Y.
17. Select Swept Sine.
18. In the Force Magnitude text box, enter 1.
19. In the Phase Angle (deg) text box, enter 0.
20. Select OK.
Adams/Vibration creates another input channel and vibration actuator.
Overview
In this section, you run a vibration analysis in a particular configuration. Completing this section involves
the following:
• Creating and Running Vibration Analyses
17
Testing the Model
Overview
In this section, you use Adams/PostProcessor to study the data from the vibration analysis you
performed.
Completing this section involves the following:
• Reviewing Tabular Results
• Plotting System Modes
• Animating a Normal Modes Analysis
• Animating a Forced Vibration Analysis
• Plotting Frequency Response
• Plotting Power Spectral Density
• Plotting Modal Coordinates
17
Reviewing the Model
Note that all modes of the model are stable. If the model had unstable modes, they would be
highlighted in the table. If you had performed multiple vibration analyses, you could use the +/-
buttons in the top right corner of the window to navigate between eigenvalue tables of successive
analyses.
2. Select Close to close this table.
This table displays how much the 16 modes in this model are excited at this forcing frequency for
input input_y. You can review the modal coordinates at different excitation frequencies using the
Frequency slider.
2. Select Modal Participation to display the modal participation table in the analysis.
3. Select Modal Energy to display the modal energy distribution table.
4. Select Close to complete your review of the Modal Info tables.
19
Reviewing the Model
Page
Menu bar
Menu toolbar
Treeview
Property editor
Status toolbar
Dashboard
2. In the dashboard, set the Source to System Modes.
3. From the Simulation list, select vertical_analysis.
4. From the Eigen list, select EIGEN_1.
5. Select Add Scatters.
Adams/PostProcessor plots system modes. The scatter plot should look as shown in Figure 5.
6. On the Curve Manager toolbar, select the Plot Tracking tool . Move your cursor over one
of the plotted modes. Notice how the real and imaginary values for the mode are displayed on top
of the plot.
You can also zoom in on the scatter plot to view details for -5.0, 0.0 on the real axis and -15.0,
15.0 on the imaginary axis.
These lightly damped, low-frequency modes are the modes you are most concerned with for the
payload_adapter design; they tend to influence the amount of energy transmitted from the
launch vehicle into the satellite.
7. Turn off plot tracking by selecting the Plot Tracking tool again.
8. From the Vibration menu, point to Review, and then select Create Scatter Plot with Eigen
Table.
The scatter is plotted with a table of eigenvalues as shown in Figure 6 below.
21
Reviewing the Model
Note: The label on the animation is EIGEN_#, where # is the run number of the animation.
Note: To view the animation from different angles, rotate the view by typing a lowercase r and
then using the mouse to rotate the view.
23
Reviewing the Model
• Right-click the Page Layout tool , and select the Horizontal, 2-page tool .
• The viewport now contains the frequency response function plot and a blank plot.
From these plots you can determine the two primary modes that affect the vertical acceleration
response. The first prominent mode is around 2.5 Hz. The second prominent mode is just above
10 Hz. These two modes contribute to an attenuation of accelerations about 4 Hz. This can be seen
by comparing the input acceleration (ref_y_acc) directly with the output acceleration.
Overview
In this section, you will investigate the lateral vibration environment. Different modes will influence the
lateral acceleration at the panel corner than the vertical acceleration. You will identify the modes that
influence the lateral acceleration and plot the frequency response function associated with the x direction
of the panel.
Completing this section involves the following:
• Creating and Running a Forced-Vibration Analysis
• Animating a Normal-Modes Analysis
• Plotting Force Frequency Response
17
Improving Your Design
From the frequency response functions, it is clear that the input becomes attenuated above about
5.8 Hz (see Figure 1). Therefore, any accelerations that come through the test base into the
payload adapter will be sharply attenuated by the bushings connecting the payload adapter with
the satellite bus.
15
Optimizing the Model
Overview
In this section, you modify an existing design variable so that you can determine what value of damping
is optimal for reducing vibration for a given frequency range.
Completing this section involves the following:
• Performing an Adams/View Automatic Design Study Analysis
• Conclusion
17
Optimizing the Model
Reviewing Parameterization
In this section, you’ll investigate the parameterization set up for the bushing damping. You’ll then define
the range over which the design variable will be varied.
10. To define the range over which the design variable will be varied, specify the following:
• Standard value: 1.0
• Min. Value: 1.0
• Max. Value: 20.0
11. To save your selection, select OK.
12. Close the Information Window and the Database Navigator (if it is still open).
To define the Adams/View objective for the use with an Adams/Vibration analysis:
1. From the Vibration menu, point to Improve, point to Vibration Design Objective, and then
select New.
The Create Vibration Design Objective Macro and the Create Design Objective dialog boxes
appear.
2. In the Create Design Objective dialog box, enter Max_FRF in the Name text box.
3. In the Create Vibration Design Objective Macro dialog box, right-click the Return Value
Variable text box, point to Variable, and then select Create.
The Create Design Variable dialog box appears.
4. Set Standard Value to 0.0.
5. Accept the remaining defaults of the Create Design Variable dialog box, and then select OK.
This variable will be used as the return variable to track the value of the objective for each
simulation.
6. From the Target Vibration Data list, select Frequency Response: 1 input, 1 output.
7. Right-click the Input Channel text box, point to Input_Channel, point to Guesses, and then
select input_x.
8. Right-click the Output Channel text box, point to Output_Channel, point to Guesses, and then
select p1_corner_x_acc.
9. Set Value Type to Maximum.
10. Set Frequency Range to All Frequencies.
11. Select OK to create the vibration design objective macro.
Adams/Vibration automatically fills in the text boxes in the Create Design Objective dialog box
with the reference to the return variable DV_1 and the macro MACRO_1, created by Adams/View,
to calculate the design objective for every simulation as specified.
12. Select OK in the Create Design Objective dialog box.
Storing Results
Here you tell Adams/View where to store the results.
2. Right-click the Simulation Script text box, point to Simulation Script, point to Guesses, and
then select .multirun_vib.
3. Set Study a to Objective.
4. Right-click the Objective text box, point to Objective, point to Guesses, and then select
max_FRF.
5. Accept the default setting of Design Study.
6. Right-click the Design Variable text box, point to Variable, point to Browse, and then select
percent_damping.
7. Confirm that Default Levels is set to 5.
8. Select Start to initiate the design study.
After the design study analysis runs, Adams/Vibration generates a plot indicating the maximum
of the selected FRF for the five different cases.
Conclusion
From the frequency response plot, it is clear that 5% damping is best for attenuating vibration for the 5
to 10 Hz range. This damping gives the steepest roll-off for the acceleration frequency response. This
low damping, however, has the highest peak response at 2.5 Hz. On the other hand, setting
percent_damping to 12.5% gives the lowest peak response, but it does not roll off as rapidly in the 100
to 400 Hz range as it does for 5% damping.
You have designed the concept of a vibration isolation system for a satellite. You first checked the
payload adapter frequency response in the vertical direction, finding two modes which affected the
transmitted vibration.
Next, you checked the frequency response in the lateral direction. You investigated the effect of damping
on the transmitted vibration and selected an optimal damping ratio.
Further design investigations could include the effects of flexible bodies to represent the solar panels.
You could further improve the vibration isolation characteristics by replacing linear bushings with
frequency dependent bushings. See Knowledge Base article 12433 at
http://support.adams.com/kb/faq.asp?ID=kb12433.dasp for more information.
26 Getting Started Using Adams/Vibration