VIBRATION

Displacement (symbol x , measured in m, mm, μm)

Displacement is the distance moved in a stated direction. It is a vector; it has magnitude (how far) and
direction (which way). The displacement-time curve for a single-frequency, sinusoidal oscillation has the
following appearance:
Di spl acem ent-ti m e graph

40

30
displam ent (µm )

20

10

-10

-20

-30

-40
0
time (ms )

The curve above may be represented by the expression:

x  xpeak  sin2ft 
where: x is the displacement at time instant t and has the units of xpeak (*)
xpeak is the amplitude of the oscillation, in mm or m etc
f is the frequency of the oscillation, in hertz Hz
t is the instant of time at which the displacement, x, is being determined, in second
(* because the sine of an angle is a dimensionless number lying between +1 and –1)

The whole expression (2πft) is an angle, since the sine can be only for an angle. The term 2πf is known
as the angular frequency and is often represented by the symbol ω. The expression above, now becomes:

x  xpeak  sint 

Velocity (symbol v , measured in m/s, mm/s, μm/s)

The velocity of an object is the rate of change of its displacement, which is the speed at which it is
travelling in a stated direction. It is a vector quantity; it has magnitude (how fast) and direction (which
way). The velocity at any instant of time is the gradient (or slope) of the displacement-time graph at that
instant of time. So the above displacement-time graph yields the following velocity-time graph:
V elocity-time graph
15000

10000
velocity (µm /s)

5000

-5000

-10000

-15000
0
time (ms)

Notice that the velocity is zero when the object is at its peak displacement (i.e. is about to reverse its
direction of travel, so the velocity goes from positive to negative, or vice versa). The velocity is a
maximum (positive or negative) when the displacement is zero (i.e. the object is moving through the
central part of the oscillation).

Vibration page 1 of 3.
The curve above may be represented by the expression:

v  vpeak  cos 2ft 

where: v is the velocity at time instant t and has the units of vpeak (*)
vpeak is the maximum velocity of the oscillation, in μm/s or mm/s etc
f is the frequency of the oscillation, in hertz Hz
t is the instant of time at which the velocity, v, is being determined, in second
(* because the cosine of an angle is a dimensionless number lying between +1 and –1)

It is possible to establish that:

vpeak  2f  xpeak

Acceleration (symbol x , measured in m/s2, mm/s2, μm/s2)

The acceleration of an object is the rate of change of its velocity. The acceleration at any instant of time
is the gradient (or slope) of the velocity-time graph at that instant of time. So the above velocity-time
graph yields the following acceleration-time graph:
A cceleration-time graph

4000000
acceleration (µm /s²)

2000000

-2000000

-4000000
0
time (ms)

The curve above may be represented by the expression:

a  apeak  ( sin2ft )
where: a is the acceleration at time instant t and has the units of apeak (*)
apeak is the maximum acceleration of the oscillation, in μm/s2 or mm/s2 etc
f is the frequency of the oscillation, in hertz Hz
t is the instant of time at which the velocity, v, is being determined, in second
(* because the sine of an angle is a dimensionless number lying between +1 and –1)

It is possible to establish that:

apeak = 2πf  vpeak = 2πf  (2πf  xpeak) = 4π2 f 2  xpeak

Summary

v = 2πfx a = 2πfv a = 4π2 f 2x

For a single-frequency, sinusoidal vibration, rms  peak , so the above three expressions apply
2
equally to both rms and peak values of x, v and a (but rms and peak may not be mixed in the same
equation).

Vibration page 2 of 3.
Exercises

1. The three graphs above relate to a vibrating surface. The frequency of the vibration is 50 Hz.

(a) From the graphs, write down the peak values of the displacement, velocity and
acceleration.

(b) Calculate the rms values of the displacement, velocity and acceleration.

(c) Calculate to show that the expressions v = 2πfx , a = 2πfv , a = 4π2 f 2x hold true for
both rms and peak values of this vibration.

2. A vibrating surface has a peak displacement of 0.01 mm and a frequency of 80 Hz. Calculate the
rms and peak values of the displacement, velocity and acceleration of this surface.

3. Measurements with an accelerometer show that a motor casing is vibrating, predominantly, at a

frequency of 160 Hz with an rms acceleration of 5 m/s2. Calculate the rms and peak values of the
displacement, velocity and acceleration of this casing.

4. A diesel generator causes the floor of a room to vibrate, predominantly, at 125 Hz.
Measurements establish that the peak velocity of the vibration in 800 μm/s. Calculate:

(a) The peak displacement of the floor; and

(b) The rms acceleration of the floor.

5. The driver’s seat in an excavator has an rms acceleration of 0.3 m/s2 at a frequency of 10 Hz.
Calculate the peak displacement.

Answers

1. displacement, x velocity, v acceleration, a

peak (from graphs) 40 μm 12 500 μm/s 4 000 000 μm/s2
rms (divide by √2) 28.3 μm 8 839 μm/s 2 828 427 μm/s2

2. peak 0.01 mm (given) 5.027 mm/s 2 527 mm/s2

rms (divide by √2) 0.007 1mm 3.554 mm/s 1 787 mm/s2

3. peak 7 μm 7 mm/s 7.071 m/s2

rms (divide by √2) 4.95 μm 4.97 mm/s 5 m/s2 (given)

4. peak 1.02 μm 800 μm/s (given)

rms (divide by √2) 0.44 m/s2

5. peak 0.1075 mm

Vibration page 3 of 3.