Student ID________________

Surname________________

Faculty of Engineering, Health, Science and Environment

School of Engineering and Information Technology

MID SEMESTER TEST

SEMESTER: One
YEAR: 2017
UNIT: ENG432 – Dynamics of Engineering Systems
LECTURER: Stefanija Klaric

EXAMINATION TIME:
Reading: 10 minutes
Writing: 120 minutes

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES:
1. Read all questions carefully
2. Answer all questions
3. Show all working
4. This test constitutes 25% of the total marks for this unit
5. Total marks available on this test is 95
6. Questions are not of equal value
7. Use dark blue or black ink

PERMITTED MATERIALS:
1. This is a RESTRICTED OPEN BOOK examination
2. Any non-programmable calculator is permitted
3. No handwritten notes are permitted
4. No dictionaries are permitted
5. Permitted Lecture Textbook (Unannotated): “Mechanical Vibration” by William J.
Palm III
6. Laptops, tablets or mobile phones are not allowed

EXAM BOOKLETS:
1 x 16 page

ATTACHED MATERIALS:

EXAMINATION PAPERS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO BE REMOVED FROM THE

EXAMINATION VENUE.
Question 1. (20 marks)

An electronic control system module for an automobile engine is to be mounted on top

of the fender inside the engine compartment (Figure 1). It is desirable to isolate the
module from the vibration induced in the car body by road and engine vibration.
Design the isolator (calculate c and k if ζ=0.02) if the mass of the module is 3 kg and
the dominant vibration of the fender is described by: y(t)= 0.01 sin(35t) m. It is
desired to keep the displacement of the module less than 0.005 m. What is the
magnitude of the force transmitted to the module trough the isolator?

Figure 1 (a) The location of the car’s electronic control module, (b)
Control module mounted on the inside fender on an isolator, (c)
Vibration model of the module isolator system

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ENG432 Dynamics of Engineering Systems
Mid-semester test 2017
Question 2. (20 marks)

The 50 kg mass is released from rest at height 0.75 m above the middle spring (Figure
2). The spring constants are k1=10 kN/m and k2=8 kN/m. Compute the maximum
deflection of the middle spring.

0.2 m

Figure 2

Question 3. (15marks)

a) A certain mass-spring system has the equation of motion 3𝑥𝑥̈ + 2700𝑥𝑥 = 0. If

x(0)=0.05 m and 𝑥𝑥̇ (0) = 0.3 m/s, determine the values of A, ωn and 𝜑𝜑 in the
following solution (7 marks):
𝑥𝑥 (𝑡𝑡 ) = 𝐴𝐴 sin(𝜔𝜔𝑛𝑛 𝑡𝑡 + 𝜑𝜑)

b) A spring-mass-dumper system has mass of 100 kg, stiffness 3000 N/m, and
damping coefficient of 300 kg/s. Calculate the undamped natural frequency, the
damping ratio and damped natural frequency. Does the solution oscillate? (8
marks)

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ENG432 Dynamics of Engineering Systems
Mid-semester test 2017
Question 4. (15 marks)

A 30-kg refrigerator unit is supported on three undamped isolators, each with a

stiffness of k N/m. The unit operates at 600 rpm. What should be the value of the k if
one-twelfth of the disturbing force of the unit is to be transmitted to the support box?

Question 5. (20 marks)

Determine the response of an undamped system to a ramp input of the form F(t)=F0 t,
where F0 is a constant for the case m= 1 kg, k=100 N/m, and F0=50 N.

Question 6. (5 marks)

A flat plate slides over a horizontal flat surface, which is lubricated with an oil whose
viscosity is μ=0.8 N·s/m2. The contact area is 0.15 m2. Assuming that the oil film is 1
mm thick:
a) How much force is required to keep the plate moving at 0.5 m/s? (2 marks)
b) Suppose the estimate of the film thickness is off by ±50 %. Compute the
uncertainty in the value of the force required to keep the plate moving at 0.5
m/s. (3 marks)

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ENG432 Dynamics of Engineering Systems
Mid-semester test 2017