MEC2045S, Applied Engineering Mechanics

Handbook for Gears and Vibrations, 2021

Originally written by: Genevieve Langdon and Ernesto Ismail

Compiled and edited by: Colin du Sart

Revision: 22 October 2021

MEC2045S Gears and Vibrations Handbook 2021 Contents

DISCLAIMER

This handbook has been compiled from a variety of sources specifically for the MEC2045S course and must
not to be distributed for any other purpose. Notwithstanding, in-text citations are provided where content
has been directly copied (e.g. images).
MEC2045S Gears and Vibrations Handbook 2021 Contents

CONTENTS

Contents ......................................................................................................................................................... i

1. Gears ..................................................................................................................................................... 1

1.1. Types of gears ............................................................................................................................... 1

1.1.1. Gear sets on parallel shafts ................................................................................................... 1

1.1.2. Gear sets on non-parallel shafts ........................................................................................... 2

1.1.3. Rack and pinion ..................................................................................................................... 4

1.2. Gear symbols................................................................................................................................. 4

1.3. Gear features and profile .............................................................................................................. 5

1.4. Kinematics of gear pairs ................................................................................................................ 6

1.4.1. Pitch line velocity .................................................................................................................. 7

1.4.2. Velocity and reduction ratio ................................................................................................. 7

1.4.3. Efficiency of power transmission .......................................................................................... 8

1.5. Simple gear trains ......................................................................................................................... 9

1.5.1. Efficiency of gear trains ......................................................................................................... 9

1.5.2. Idler gears.............................................................................................................................. 9

1.5.3. Gear sets on non-parallel shafts ......................................................................................... 10

1.6. Epicyclic gear trains ..................................................................................................................... 10

1.6.1. Advantages of epicyclic gear trains ..................................................................................... 11

1.6.2. Sizing of gears ..................................................................................................................... 12

1.6.3. Kinematic analysis of epicyclic gear trains .......................................................................... 12

1.6.4. Power and torque calculations ........................................................................................... 13

Review questions .................................................................................................................................... 14

References and additional readings ....................................................................................................... 14

2. Vibrations ............................................................................................................................................ 14

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2.1. Vibration fundamentals .............................................................................................................. 15

2.2. Harmonic motion ........................................................................................................................ 16

2.3. Undamped free vibration............................................................................................................ 17

2.3.1. Equation of motion ............................................................................................................. 17

2.3.2. Analytical solution ............................................................................................................... 18

2.3.3. Equilibrium position ............................................................................................................ 20

2.3.4. Springs in series or parallel ................................................................................................. 20

2.4. Damped free vibration ................................................................................................................ 22

2.4.1. Equation of motion ............................................................................................................. 22

2.4.2. Analytical solution ............................................................................................................... 23

2.4.3. Categories of damped motion ............................................................................................ 24

2.4.4. Dampers in series or parallel .............................................................................................. 26

2.4.5. Case study – determination of damping from experiment ................................................ 27

2.5. Forced vibration .......................................................................................................................... 28

2.5.1. Types of forced vibration .................................................................................................... 28

2.5.2. General solution for harmonic forced vibration ................................................................. 29

2.5.3. Undamped forced vibration ................................................................................................ 30

2.5.4. Damped forced vibration .................................................................................................... 34

2.5.5. Base excitation through a spring ........................................................................................ 38

2.5.6. Base excitation measuring applications.............................................................................. 38

Review questions .................................................................................................................................... 40

References and additional readings ....................................................................................................... 40

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1. GEARS

Transmission of motion and power (rotational or translational) is common in mechanical and mechatronic
systems. Such transmission can be achieved with several technologies, including gears, pulleys and belts
or sprockets and chains. This section includes a review of different types of gears, their use case, and
corresponding calculations such as transmission ratio, efficiency, torque and power.

A gear is a rotating disk with teeth that mesh with other gears (or a rack) to transmit motion (rotational
or translational) and power from one machine part to another part at a constant angular velocity. Gears
are relatively mechanically efficient, quiet and strong, provided care is taken in their selection and usage.
Gears can be used to change the rotational speed of one shaft relative to another. If the gears have the
same number of teeth, the shafts will run at the same speed. When there is a difference in the number of
teeth, the shafts will rotate at different speeds. When there is a speed change, there is also a change in
the power and torque transmitted from one shaft to another.

1.1. Types of gears

Several types of gears exist for use in different applications. In presenting these gears, it is convenient to
categorise these gears as follows: Gears sets on parallel shafts; Gear sets on non-parallel shafts, Rack and
pinion.

1.1.1. Gear sets on parallel shafts

Gears running on parallel shafts can include internal or external gear sets as shown in Figure 1-1. The basic
operation of both types is similar, but they have differing efficiencies. Furthermore, external gears result
in a direction change whereas internal gears do not. Internal gears may also take up less space. For both
sets, the teeth of the meshing gears must have complimentary shapes. The smaller of the gears is usually
referred to as the pinion, and the larger as the bull gear (or simply the gear).

Spur gears are some of the simplest gears to manufacture and have teeth which run parallel to the shafts.
Spur gears are prone to being noisy, especially when operated at high speeds.

Helical gears have teeth which twists around the shafts which cause axial loads in the shafts and must be
supported by bearings that can accommodate these loads. Sometimes two sets of helical gears with
opposing twist directions are placed back-to-back to oppose these axial forces and are known as

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herringbone gears. Helical gears are usually quieter than spur gears because the teeth gradually mesh.
The angle of the helix is known as the helical pitch.

Figure 1-1: Gear sets on parallel shafts, taken from Collins, Busby & George (2010)

1.1.2. Gear sets on non-parallel shafts

Gears running on non-parallel shafts can include gear sets with intersecting or non-intersecting shafts as
shown in Figure 1-2. Bevel gears have teeth which are set on an angle (a bevel) relative to the face of each
other. This configuration allows motion to be transmitted to shafts that are not parallel. Usually, bevelled
gearing is configured so that the shafts are at 90° to each other. However, other configurations are

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possible. When one of the bevelled gears is larger than the other, the larger is often referred to as a ring
gear or a crown gear.

Figure 1-2: Gear sets on non-parallel shafts, taken from Collins et al. (2010)

When the axes of the shafts of bevelled gears intersect, the gears are simply known as bevel gears.
Occasionally, they are further classified into straight bevel and spiral bevel gears, which are the analogues
of straight and helical gears.

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Where the axes do not intersect, the gears are known as hypoid and spiroid gears. Hypoid gears usually
resemble bevel gears, but are placed offset to the line of intersection. Spiroid gears are even more offset,
and can be considered a subset of hypoid gears.

When the teeth of both gears are set on the circumference of the gear, and the shafts are not parallel,
this is known as a worm gear. Typically, the shafts are set at 90° to each other. However, other
configurations are possible, which are then known as crossed worm gears. The worm gear looks similar to
a helical gear, but usually has a hollow to accommodate the worm. The worm has just a few teeth that
spiral around it, similar to the threads on a screw. The number of threads are important in determining
the velocity ratio, and will be discussed later. Worm gears are typified by large reduction ratios (with
proportionate increase in mechanical advantage) but low efficiency. They are usually self-locking, in that
the gear can turn the worm, but not the other way around.

1.1.3. Rack and pinion

A rack and pinion is used to convert rotational motion to linear motion, or the linear to rotational motion.
The rack is effectively a gear of infinite radius. Both straight and helical teeth are commonly used.

Figure 1-3: Rack and pinion, taken from Collins et al. (2010)

1.2. Gear symbols

Including all the teeth in a drawing of a gear set causes clutter. Therefore, symbols are used in technical
drawings. Figure 1-4 shows some common representations of gears.

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Figure 1-4: Common representations of gears, unknown author

1.3. Gear features and profile

To analyse gears, it is necessary to understand the different features of gear teeth. Taking the example of
a spur gear, Figure 1-5 presents the graphical nomenclature of spur gear teeth and Table 1-1 elaborates
on key features.

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Involute

Figure 1-5: Graphical nomenclature of spur gear teeth, taken from Budynas-Nisbett (2006)

Table 1-1: Key features of gears

Feature Description
Pitch circle Theoretical circle upon which the gear tooth is designed. This has an associated pitch
circle diameter (PCD).
Module (not shown) The module, 𝑚, is an indicator of the size of the teeth and is defined as the ratio of the
𝐷𝑝
PCD, 𝐷𝑝 , and the number of teeth, 𝑁 i.e. 𝑚 = . A pair of gears must have the same
𝑁

module to mesh properly. Standard gear modules range from 0.3 to 25.
Involute Historically, various tooth geometries were used, but these days there is only one gear
tooth profile that is considered important. The involute profile is the only one used in
practice these days and was developed to produce a constant angular velocity ratio
during meshing (known as conjugate action).

1.4. Kinematics of gear pairs

Consider two gears A and B, as shown in Figure 1-6. Gear A would be called the pinion. If gear A is driving
gear B then gear A is the input gear. Gear A has to rotate many times for each complete revolution of gear
B because it is smaller and has less teeth.

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Figure 1-6: Two gears in mesh

1.4.1. Pitch line velocity

For gears without slipping, the pitch line velocity of two gears in mesh must be identical as shown in
Figure 1-6. Therefore, for gears A and B in mesh:

𝑣𝑝 = 𝜔𝐴 𝑟𝐴 = 𝜔𝐵 𝑟𝐵 (1-1)

where 𝑣𝑝 is the pitch line velocity in m/s, 𝜔 is the angular velocity in rad/s and 𝑟 is the pitch circle radius
in meter.

EXAMPLE 1.1

A 20 tooth spur gear has a module of 3 mm and runs at a speed of 1800 rpm. The driven gear has 30 teeth.
Find (a) the speed of the driven gear, (b) the circular pitch and (c) the theoretical centre-to-centre
distance.

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

1.4.2. Velocity and reduction ratio

The ratio of the rotational speed of the input gear to the rotational speed of the output gear is known as
the velocity ratio:

𝜔𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑖𝑛 𝑁𝑖𝑛 (1-2)

𝑉𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 = 𝑉𝑅 = = =
𝜔𝑖𝑛 𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑜𝑢𝑡
and the inverse is known as the reduction ratio:

𝜔𝑖𝑛 𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑜𝑢𝑡 (1-3)

𝑅𝑒𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 = 𝑅𝑅 = = =
𝜔𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑖𝑛 𝑁𝑖𝑛
If 𝑉𝑅 < 1 (𝑅𝑅 > 1), the gear pair is a speed reducer, and if 𝑉𝑅 > 1 (𝑅𝑅 < 1), the gear pair is a speed increaser.
Most gear drives reduce speed (to increase torque and efficiency).

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Note that velocity ratio is defined by Equation (1-3) in some texts. Furthermore, the term gear ratio is also
commonly used. These inconsistent definitions may cause confusion. Therefore, it is important to note
that the definitions provided by Equations (1-2) and (1-3) will be used for this course.

EXAMPLE 1.2

Consider the simple gear train below. Gear 1 has 12 teeth, is 24 mm in diameter and rotates clockwise at
300 rpm.

(a) Draw a simple diagram to show the direction of rotation for each gear.
(b) What is the transmission ratio of the gear train?
(c) What speed does gear 5 rotate at?
(d) What is the pitch line velocity of gear 5?

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

1.4.3. Efficiency of power transmission

Due to friction acting between gear teeth in direct contact, some of the power transmitted by a gear pair
will be lost. Friction changes the angle of the reaction force between contacting teeth. If the load at the
point of contact between gear teeth can be assumed constant – the loss of energy due to friction, known
as “tooth losses” can be calculated from geometry considerations. The derivation of an efficiency chart or
equation falls outside the scope of this course, but the application is considered. The general gear
efficiency, 𝜂𝑔 , equation is provided below:

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𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑇𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝜔𝑜𝑢𝑡 (1-4)

𝜂𝑔 = =
𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝑇𝑖𝑛 𝜔𝑖𝑛
where 𝑃 is power in Watt and 𝑇 is torque in N·m. For most practical spur gear pairs, the efficiency of the
pair will range between 97.0 and 99.5 %. Larger reduction ratios result in higher gear pair efficiencies for
a given size of input (pinion) gear. Worm gears have relatively low efficiencies compared to other gear
types.

1.5. Simple gear trains

A gear train is a set of gears that contains more than one pair of meshing gears. In this case, the gear ratios
of the individual pairs must be multiplied to find the speed ratio for the gear train. This is known as the
transmission ratio, which simplifies to the ratio of output speed (speed of the last gear in the train) to the
input speed (speed of the first gear in the train):

𝜔𝑜𝑢𝑡 (1-5)
𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 = 𝑇𝑅 = 𝑉𝑅1 × 𝑉𝑅2 × 𝑉𝑅3 × … × 𝑉𝑅𝑛 =
𝜔𝑖𝑛
It is often more convenient to express transmission ratio in terms of the gear teeth, as these are either
known in advance or needs to be determined:

𝜔𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑁𝑖𝑛 (1-6)

𝑇𝑅 = =
𝜔𝑖𝑛 𝑁𝑜𝑢𝑡
A positive transmission ratio value means that the output gear turns in the same sense as the input. A
negative 𝑇𝑅 value means they turn with opposite sense. The direction of the output relative to the output
can be determined by observation, noting that there is a direction reversal for each pair of external gears.

1.5.1. Efficiency of gear trains

The overall gear train efficiency is equal to the product of the individual gear pair efficiencies. Therefore,
using lots of gears produces very low efficiency and takes up lots of space. However, using more than two
gears are sometimes required, for example when the rotation direction of the driving and driven gear
need to be the same.

1.5.2. Idler gears

Sometimes a gear can be both a driver gear and a driven gear. This gear is known as an idler gear (see
Figure 1-7). Note that:

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• The no of teeth will appear in both the numerator (top) and denominator (bottom) of the
transmission ratio equation. Therefore, an idler does not affect the magnitude of TR and so any
pitch diameter size and number of teeth can be used for an idler gear.
• Idler gears cause a direction reversal of the output gear.
• Idler gears can be used to fill space between two gears in a train when the desired distance
between their centres is greater than the centre distance for the two gears alone.

Figure 1-7 Gear train with an idler, unknown author

1.5.3. Gear sets on non-parallel shafts

Referring to Figure 1-4, note that we cannot tell the difference between spur gears or helical gears. For
the kinematic analysis of gears this does not matter as the relations are the same. Similarly, the kinematic
analysis of non-parallel shaft gears can be treated in the same way as the parallel shaft examples provided
in aforementioned text, so long as direction issues are taken into account. For example, if a bevel gear
transfers motion about 90°, this must be included in the schematic drawing of the gear train. Note that
for worm gears, the number of teeth on the worm is replaced by the number of threads for velocity ratio
calculations i.e. the number of “starts”. Worms can have single threads, or multiple threads (2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
8 and upwards are used).

1.6. Epicyclic gear trains

Conventional gear trains are fixed, however, unusual effects can be obtained by permitting some of the
gear axes to rotate about others. These trains are called planetary or epicyclic gear trains. A simple
epicyclic gear train is shown in Figure 1-8. It includes a sun, carrier, planet and ring or annulus gear.
Epicyclic gear trains have two degrees of freedom. For constrained motion, they must therefore have two
inputs, which could be the motion of any two elements of the train. In most epicyclic trains, one of the
elements is attached to the frame and has no motion. Figure 1-9 provides one such example where the

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sun is attached to the input of the gear train, the ring is fixed, the planet gears rotate about its own axis
as well as the carrier axis, and the carrier is attached to the output of the gear train.

Planet Ring

Sun
Carrier

Figure 1-8: Epicyclic gear train, unknown author

Figure 1-9: Schematic of an epicyclic gear train with a fixed ring, unknown author

Epicyclic gear trains can be used to provide a large reduction ratio, be a precise way to position a heavy
shaft. If multiple planetary gear trains are used, virtually any type of gearing can be devised, often in a
smaller space than that required by a standard gear train.

1.6.1. Advantages of epicyclic gear trains

Advantages of epicyclic gear trains include:

• Pure torque transmission i.e. no moments (see Figure 1-10)

• Torque is shared by three gears, not a single gear pair
• Compact internal gear system

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• Inline/concentric input and output possible

Figure 1-10: Comparison of torque and moments in simple gear pair (left) and epicyclic gear train (right)

1.6.2. Sizing of gears

From simple geometry:

𝐷𝑝.𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 𝐷𝑝.𝑠𝑢𝑛 + 2𝐷𝑝.𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑡 (1-7)

and since all gears must have same module to mesh properly, the number of teeth can be worked out.

1.6.3. Kinematic analysis of epicyclic gear trains

It is more difficult to determine the angular velocity ratio of an epicyclic gear train because of the double
rotation. There are a few different methods for the kinematic analysis of planetary gear trains, for
example:

• Instantaneous centres method

• Formula method
• Tabular method

and within these methods there are variations. In this course, the tabular method is taught (through
Example 1.3) because it is the quickest and probably the most intuitive. However, any method may be
used as long as the solution includes all the workings (and clearly indicates how the solution is found).

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1.6.4. Power and torque calculations

Power flow through an epicyclic gearbox is difficult to track, and beyond the scope of this course.
However, the gearbox input torque, gearbox output torque and the restraining torques for fixed gears can
be easily calculated using power and efficiency (see Section 1.4.3), and torque equilibrium concepts i.e.
∆𝑇 = 0.

By convention, input power is positive (power into the gearbox) and output power is negative (power
taken out of the gearbox i.e. driving an output shaft for example). This implies that input and output shafts
which are rotating in the same direction will have opposing torques (opposite direction) and vice versa.

EXAMPLE 1.3

Consider the epicyclic gear train shown in Figure 1-8, where the ring is the fixed gear (or reaction gear).

(a) Draw a schematic of the gear train.

(b) Using the tabular method (see procedure below), provide an expression for the transmission ratio
of the gear train. Is the gear train a speed increaser or reducer?
(c) If the input gear is driven by a 3 kW motor rotating at 3600 rpm, calculate the input torque.
(d) Assuming a gearbox efficiency of 90%, calculate the output power
(e) If the ring gear has 90 teeth and the sun gears have 30 teeth each, calculate the output torque.
(f) What is the magnitude of the restraining torque provided by the housing?

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

Procedure for the tabular method

1. Unlock the reaction member from the gear train housing (or frame), and lock it to the carrier
together with the other gears so that there is no relative motion among the gears.
2. Rotate the carrier arm by a fixed amount in the positive direction and document the motion of all
the gears relative to the frame.
3. Unlock the gears which were locked to the carrier in Step 1, and lock the carrier to the frame.
4. Rotate the reaction member by the same fixed amount in Step 2, but in the negative direction,
and document the motion of all the gears relative to the carrier.
5. Complete a table of the form below, ensuring that the total motion of the reaction member sums
to zero.

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Role Input Reaction/fixed Idler Output

Component Sun Ring Planet Carrier arm

Motion relative to frame

Motion relative to arm

Total

The above method may be extended for more complex gear trains (e.g. those with 2 or more planets).

Review questions

1. Describe the difference between a spur gear and a helical gear.

2. Give two applications of a worm gear pair.
3. Draw the symbol for a 90 degree bevel gear.
4. How does an idler gear influence the motion of the output gear?
5. Why do gear teeth in direct content not transmit 100% of the power between gears?
6. Increasing the number of teeth increases efficiency. True or False?
7. What is an internal gear?
8. What is the module of a gear and why is it important?

References and additional readings

Budynas-Nisbett. 2006. Mechanical Engineering: Shigley’s Mechanical Engineering Design. 8th ed.
McGraw-Hill.

Collins, J.A., Busby, H. & George, S. 2010. Mechanical Design of Machine Elements and Machines - A Failure
Prevention Perspective. 2nd ed. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.

2. VIBRATIONS

Mechanical vibration refers to any system subject to periodic, oscillating motion. This includes pendulums,
fluid motion, as well as many other mechanical oscillators. These vibrations can be desirable, for example
sound produced by a speaker or the movement of a sieve grating to sort crushed rocks in ore benefaction.
However, vibration is often undesired, like jitter in analogue instruments, poor ride quality in vehicles, or
uncontrolled motion of buildings due to wind or earthquake loading. Lastly, measuring vibration can give
an analyst insight into a mechanical system, a classic example of this is condition monitoring where

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changes in the vibration signature of a machine can give information about wear of bearings or damage
to gear-boxes. In this section the student will learn how to:

• identify a vibrating system

• reduce the full real world problem into a simplified model
• set up the equations of motion that govern the system
• solve these equations
• analyse the results

2.1. Vibration fundamentals

Any vibrating system will consist of moving elements that have inertia mass (and therefore kinetic energy),
that store potential energy such as a spring or gravity, and that dissipate energy such as a viscous damper
or friction. The vibrating motion will generally result in the periodic transfer of energy from kinetic to
potential and back again with some losses. Systems with these dissipative losses are referred to as being
damped and those without as undamped. In reality, all systems will have some degree of damping but
the undamped vibration assumption is useful in many cases.

If the system is subject to some periodic external force, this is known as forced vibration. If there is no
external periodic force once the system has been set in motion, then this is known as free vibration.

If the motion of the system can be uniquely defined by a single independent variable, then it is a single
degree of freedom (SDOF) system. An example is a single mass constrained to move in the 𝑥 direction as
shown in Figure 2-1. The pendulum in Figure 2-2 involves motion in both the 𝑥 and 𝑦 directions, however,
each position can be uniquely defined by the single angular variable 𝜃. It is therefore a SDOF system. If
the mass can move in multiple independent directions or there are multiple independent masses in the
system, then each additional motion possibility is termed a degree of freedom (DOF) and it is a
multi-degree of freedom (MDOF) system.

The scope of this course is limited to SDOF systems. Furthermore, the vibration problems will be restricted
such that they are linear and deterministic in nature. This means that any non-linearities in the behaviour
of the elements will be ignored and there will not be any random forcings on the system. As such, the
systems will mainly include motion that can be described by sinusoidal functions (see harmonic motion
in the proceeding chapter).

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Figure 2-1: Simple spring-mass system, taken from Rao (2011)

Figure 2-2: Simple pendulum, taken from Rao (2011)

2.2. Harmonic motion

𝜃
Consider the system in Figure 2-3. A mass 𝑃 rotates at an angular velocity 𝜔 = 𝑡
at a distance 𝐴 away

from centre 𝑂. The location of the mass is given by:

𝑥 = 𝐴 cos 𝜃 = 𝐴 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-1)

𝑦 = 𝐴 sin 𝜃 = 𝐴 sin(𝜔𝑡) (2-2)

the velocity is given by:

𝑥̇ = −𝜔𝐴 sin(𝜔𝑡) = −𝜔𝑦 (2-3)

𝑦̇ = 𝜔𝐴 cos(𝜔𝑡) = 𝜔𝑥 (2-4)

and the acceleration is given by:

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𝑥̈ = −𝜔2 𝐴 cos(𝜔𝑡) = −𝜔2 𝑥 (2-5)

𝑦̈ = −𝜔2 𝐴 sin(𝜔𝑡) = −𝜔2 𝑦 (2-6)

Note that the acceleration is proportional to the displacement and directed towards the mean position
i.e. 𝑂. This is known as simple harmonic motion. Other important definitions include the frequency in
Hertz i.e. the number of oscillations per second, and the period i.e. the time taken per oscillation:

𝜔 (2-7)
𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 = 𝑓 =
2𝜋
1 (2-8)
𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑑 = 𝜏 =
𝑓

Figure 2-3: Harmonic motion represented by the projection of a rotating mass, taken from Rao (2011)

2.3. Undamped free vibration

The simplest vibrating system consists of a single mass element and a single energy storage element such
as the system shown in Figure 2-1. The system is undamped because there are no damping elements
present and free because there are no additional external forces acting once the system is set in motion.
In this course, linear springs will primarily be used as the energy storage element, but the element can
also be, for example, gravity in the case of pendulums or pressure in the case of fluid systems.

2.3.1. Equation of motion

An equation of motion is used to determine the displacement of the system for a given set of initial and
boundary conditions. This equation usually takes the form of a differential equation. Once the initial
conditions have been accounted for, the displacement can be solved as a function of time.

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A linear spring, when deflected from its equilibrium position, obeys Hooke's Law. The amount the spring
deflects, 𝑥, is proportional to the force, 𝐹𝑠 , applied to it. This ratio of deflection to applied force is known
as the spring constant 𝑘. For this course, it is assumed that 𝑘 is constant in both tension and compression.
Therefore, if we consider the simple spring-mass system, the force on the mass 𝑚 is given by:

𝐹𝑚 = −𝐹𝑠

∴ 𝑚𝑥̈ = −𝑘𝑥

∴ 𝑚𝑥̈ + 𝑘𝑥 = 0 (2-9)

Equation (2-9) is the standard equation of motion for SDOF undamped free vibration. Note that by dividing
by 𝑚 and making the substitution for natural frequency, 𝜔𝑛 :

(2-10)
𝑘
𝜔𝑛 = √
𝑚

yields:

𝑥̈ + 𝜔𝑛2 𝑥 = 0 (2-11)

which is analogous to harmonic motion. Note that the term frequency is associated with both 𝜔 and 𝑓
and that it is important to differentiate between the two.

2.3.2. Analytical solution

To solve Equation (2-11) (for displacement), because we anticipate oscillatory motion, a function 𝑥 is
needed whose second derivative is of the same form but opposite in sign. The sine and cosine functions
both suit this purpose. Therefore, attempt a solution of the form:

𝑥 = 𝐴 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝐵 sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) (2-12)

Taking derivatives:

𝑥̇ = −𝐴𝜔𝑛 sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝐵𝜔𝑛 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) (2-13)

𝑥̈ = −𝐴𝜔𝑛2 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) − 𝐵𝜔𝑛2 sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) (2-14)

The constants 𝐴 and 𝐵 are obtained from the initial conditions of the position 𝑥𝑜 and velocity 𝑥̇ 0 . Noting
that sin(0) = 0 and cos(0) = 1, substituting the initial conditions into Equations (2-12) and (2-13) yields:

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𝑥𝑜 = 𝐴 (2-15)

𝑥̇ 0 = 𝐵𝜔𝑛 (2-16)

which yields the solution when substituted into Equation (2-12):

𝑥̇ 0 (2-17)
𝑥 = 𝑥0 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡)
𝜔𝑛
Alternatively, using trigonometric identifies, it can be shown that phase shifted sinusoidal and cosine
functions are equivalent solutions:

𝑥 = 𝐶 sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡 + 𝜙) (2-18)

𝑥 = 𝐶 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡 − 𝜓) (2-19)

Where the constant 𝐶 and the phase angles 𝜙 and 𝜓 are can be written in terms of 𝐴 and 𝐵:

𝐶 = √𝐴2 + 𝐵2 (2-20)
𝐴 (2-21)
𝜙 = arctan ( )
𝐵
𝐵 (2-22)
𝜓 = arctan ( )
𝐴
Equation (2-18) yields the following solution after obtaining 𝐴 and 𝐵 from initial conditions:

(2-23)
𝑥̇ 0 2 𝑥𝑜 𝜔𝑛
𝑥 = √𝑥02 + ( ) sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡 + 𝜙) , 𝜙 = arctan ( )
𝜔𝑛 𝑥̇ 0

Similarly, Equation (2-19) yields the following solution:

(2-24)
𝑥̇ 0 2 𝑥̇ 0
𝑥= √𝑥02 + ( ) cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡 − 𝜓) , 𝜓 = arctan ( )
𝜔𝑛 𝑥𝑜 𝜔𝑛

Note that although the solutions presented are equivalent, care should be taken when selecting them to
solve a problem. For example, Equation (2-18) may not be suitable for a problem where the initial velocity
is zero. Similarly, Equation (2-19) may not be suitable where the initial displacement is zero. Equation
(2-17) is therefore recommended.

EXAMPLE 2.1

A mass of 2 kg is attached to a spring of stiffness 500 N/m. If the mass is given an initial displacement of
40 mm, determine:

a) The natural frequency of the system in both rad/s and Hz.

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b) The period of vibration.

c) The displacement from the equilibrium position as a function of time.
d) The maximum velocity of the mass.
e) The maximum acceleration of the mass.

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

2.3.3. Equilibrium position

Consider the system shown in Figure 2-4 with a mass 𝑚, and a spring with unstretched length 𝑙 and
stiffness 𝑘. On the left, the system is horizontal and the spring is unstretched. There are no unbalanced
external forces and the mass is in the equilibrium position. On the right, the spring has stretched by a an
amount 𝛿𝑠𝑡 , known as the static deflection. When in this position the force in the spring cancels the effect
of gravity on the block and the system is in static equilibrium. A force balance in this position provides an
equation of motion exactly the same as that given in Equation (2-9). Therefore, it is convenient to define
the displacement datum to be at zero equilibrium rather than at zero spring deflection.

Figure 2-4: Spring-mass systems in equilibrium

2.3.4. Springs in series or parallel

Practically, linear spring elements may be consist of, for example, rods in tension or compression, a helical
wire coil, a cantilever beam, or a double clamped beam. These springs may be arranged in series or in
parallel. When arranged in series as shown in Figure 2-5, the force in each spring, 𝐹𝑠 , is equal in magnitude
but opposite in direction to the externally applied force i.e. the weight 𝑊:

𝐹𝑠 = 𝑘1 𝛿1 = 𝑘2 𝛿2 (2-25)

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To simplify the problem, the combined deflection, 𝛿𝑠𝑡 , and a spring of equivalent stiffness, 𝑘𝑒𝑞 , may be
used such that:

𝐹𝑠 = 𝑘𝑒𝑞 𝛿𝑠𝑡 (2-26)

where the general solutions are given by:

𝛿𝑠𝑡 = ∑ 𝛿𝑖 (2-27)
𝑖=1
𝑛 −1
1 (2-28)
𝑘𝑒𝑞 = (∑ )
𝑘𝑖
𝑖=1

Figure 2-5: Springs in series, taken from Rao (2011)

When arranged in parallel as shown in Figure 2-6, the deflection in each spring is the same and the
combined spring force, 𝐹𝑠 , is equal in magnitude but opposite in direction to the externally applied force
i.e. the weight 𝑊:

𝐹𝑠 = (𝑘1 + 𝑘2 )𝛿𝑠𝑡 = 𝑘𝑒𝑞 𝛿𝑠𝑡 (2-29)

In this case, note that the equivalent spring force is given by:

𝑘𝑒𝑞 = ∑ 𝑘𝑖 (2-30)
𝑖=1

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Figure 2-6: Springs in parallel, taken from Rao (2011)

2.4. Damped free vibration

Under the assumption of undamped free vibration, the total energy of the system is conserved and there
is a simple transfer of energy from kinetic to potential and back again, resulting in a vibrating system. In
most real cases, there are losses associated with this energy transfer, termed damping.

There are a variety of different sources of damping. Perhaps the most obvious source is mechanical
friction which dissipates kinetic energy as heat and is known as Coulomb damping after Coulomb's Law.
Viscous damping also dissipates kinetic energy as heat but this time through a fluid medium due to the
resistance provided by fluid viscosity. When many materials are deformed and returned to their previous
shape, not all the energy is recovered. This is known as hysteretic damping.

Of these three types of damping, viscous damping is possibly the easiest to treat mathematically and
provides a good basis for study of the other forms. The model element for viscous damping is known as a
dashpot and consists of a cylinder with a viscous fluid and a piston with holes or passages to allow the
fluid to flow from one side to the other. As the piston moves through the fluid, it encounters a viscous
resistive force, 𝐹𝑑 , proportional to the velocity of the piston:

𝐹𝑑 = 𝑐𝑥̇ (2-31)

where 𝑐 is the damping constant.

2.4.1. Equation of motion

If a mass is connected to a spring and a dashpot as shown in Figure 2-7, a force balance yields:

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𝑚𝑥̈ + 𝑐𝑥̇ + 𝑘𝑥 = 0 (2-32)

which can be written as:

𝑥̈ + 2𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑥̇ + 𝜔𝑛2 𝑥 = 0 (2-33)

by substituting for the natural frequency and the damping ratio (or viscous damping factor), 𝜁:

𝑐 (2-34)
𝜁=
2𝑚𝜔𝑛

Figure 2-7: Mass-spring-damper system, taken from Rao (2011)

2.4.2. Analytical solution

To solve Equation (2-33), a function 𝑥 is need whose first and second derivatives resemble it enough such
that a linear combination of these can be summed to zero. Therefore, attempt a solution of the form:

𝑥 = 𝐴𝑒 𝜆𝑡 (2-35)

Taking derivatives:

𝑥̇ = 𝐴𝜆𝑒 𝜆𝑡 (2-36)

𝑥̈ = 𝐴𝜆2 𝑒 𝜆𝑡 (2-37)

and substituting these into Equation (2-33) results in:

𝜆2 + 2𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝜆 + 𝜔𝑛2 = 0 (2-38)

which is known as the characteristic equation, and has roots:

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𝜆1 = 𝜔𝑛 (−𝜁 + √𝜁 2 − 1) (2-39)

𝜆2 = 𝜔𝑛 (−𝜁 − √𝜁 2 − 1) (2-40)

Here, each root provides a solution to Equation (2-35). Therefore, noting that for linear systems the
principle of superposition applies (any linear combination of solutions is also a solution), the general
solution is:

𝜔𝑛 (−𝜁+√𝜁 2 −1)𝑡 𝜔𝑛 (−𝜁−√𝜁 2 −1)𝑡 (2-41)

𝑥 = 𝐴1 𝑒 𝜆1 𝑡 + 𝐴2 𝑒 𝜆2 𝑡 = 𝐴1 𝑒 + 𝐴2 𝑒

2.4.3. Categories of damped motion

Since 𝜁 can take on any positive value between zero and infinity, 𝜁 2 − 1 may be positive, negative or zero,
which will result in real, imaginary or zero values respectively when the square root is taken. Each of these
cases may be categorised into different forms of motion.

OVERDAMPED (𝜻 > 𝟏)

The roots 𝜆1 and 𝜆2 are real, distinct and negative. This results in an exponential decay function to describe
the motion of the mass. The velocity decreases, approaching zero as 𝑡 tends to infinity. The mass returns
to the equilibrium position without crossing it. Therefore, there is no oscillating motion and no associated
period. Equation (2-41) is applied as is.

CRITICALLY DAMPED (𝜻 = 𝟏)

The roots 𝜆1 and 𝜆2 are equal real, distinct and negative. For 𝜁 = 1, Equation (2-36) reduces to:

𝑥 = (𝐴1 + 𝐴2 )𝑒 𝜔𝑛 𝑡 (2-42)

However, recall that a general solution for a second order differential equation requires two sets of
independent solutions. Then, note that two sets of independent solutions cannot be obtained by varying
the values of 𝐴1 and 𝐴2 in Equation (2-42). Fortunately, with some mathematics outside the scope of this
course, a suitable solution is obtained by performing a reduction of order using the single solution
presented in Equation (2-42):

𝑥 = (𝐴1 + 𝐴2 𝑡)𝑒 −𝜔𝑛 𝑡 (2-43)

Once again, the motion shows exponential decay with 𝑥 approaching zero as 𝑡 tends to infinity but does
so faster than in the overdamped case.

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UNDERDAMPED (𝜻 < 𝟏)

The roots 𝜆1 and 𝜆2 are complex and the real part of the solution needs to be extracted. Again, with some
mathematics outside the scope of this course, the following equation is obtained from Equation (2-41):

𝑥 = [𝐴3 cos(𝜔𝑑 𝑡) + 𝐴4 sin(𝜔𝑑 𝑡)]𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡 (2-44)

where the damped frequency, 𝜔𝑑 , is given by:

𝜔𝑑 = 𝜔𝑛 √1 − 𝜁 2 (2-45)

and therefore the damped period, 𝜏𝑑 , is given by:

2𝜋 (2-46)
𝜏𝑑 =
𝜔𝑑
As with the undamped case, alternate but equivalent solutions may be given by single trigonometric
functions:

𝑥 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡 sin(𝜔𝑑 𝑡 + 𝜙) (2-47)

𝑥 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡 cos(𝜔𝑑 𝑡 − 𝜓) (2-48)

Note that the solution is very similar to the solution for undamped free vibration case except that the
natural frequency is replaced with damped frequency, and there is a decaying exponential function which
serves to decrease the amplitude over time, eventually approaching zero as 𝑡 tends to infinity. The effect
of the damper in this underdamped case is therefore twofold. It firstly modifies the frequency of
oscillation of the system and secondly, reduces the amplitude of the oscillation until it eventually
disappears. The motion corresponding to each of the different types of damping is shown in Figure 2-8.

Figure 2-8: Motions with different types of damping, taken from Rao (2011)

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For each of the aforementioned solutions presented, the constants and phase angles can be found from
the initial conditions (usually the initial position and the initial velocity) as demonstrated in Section 2.3.2.
The results are as follows:

(2-49)
𝑥̇ 0 + 𝑥0 𝜁𝜔𝑛 2
𝐶= √𝐴23 + 𝐴24 = √𝑥02 +( )
𝜔𝑑

𝐴3 𝑥0 𝜔𝑑 (2-50)
𝜙 = arctan ( ) = arctan ( )
𝐴4 𝑥̇ 0 + 𝑥0 𝜁𝜔𝑛

𝐴4 𝑥̇ 0 + 𝑥0 𝜁𝜔𝑛 (2-51)
𝜓 = arctan ( ) = arctan ( )
𝐴3 𝑥0 𝜔𝑑

2.4.4. Dampers in series or parallel

The same relations for springs are seen for dampers in series or parallel. Therefore, an equivalent damping
constant, 𝑐𝑒𝑞 , for dampers in series is given by:

𝑛 −1
1 (2-52)
𝑐𝑒𝑞 = (∑ )
𝑐𝑖
𝑖=1

and for dampers in parallel:

𝑐𝑒𝑞 = ∑ 𝑐𝑖 (2-53)
𝑖=1

EXAMPLE 2.2

A mass of 50 kg is attached to a spring of stiffness 200 N/m and a viscous damper with coefficient 𝑐. If the
mass is released from rest at an initial displacement of 150 mm, determine the displacement at 0.5 s if:

a) 𝑐 = 100 N·s/m
b) 𝑐 = 200 N·s/m
c) 𝑐 = 300 N·s/m

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

EXAMPLE 2.3

For the system shown below, determine an expression for the damping ratio and the period. Assume that
the mass and friction of the pulleys are negligible and the cable remains taught at all times.

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[worked example solutions are provided in class]

2.4.5. Case study – determination of damping from experiment

QUESTION

A mass connected to a spring and damper is set in motion and allowed to vibrate freely. At some point an
experimenter measures its maximum displacement as 200 mm. On the next cycle the experimenter
measures a maximum displacement of 150 mm. Determine the damping ratio of the system.

ANSWER

At first it may appear that there is insufficient information to solve this problem. The specific properties
of the system (the mass, spring constant or damping coefficient) are unknown. The initial conditions of
displacement or velocity are also unknown. However, with some understanding of vibration systems and
a little bit of mathematics, the problem can be solved.

First, note that both measurements were made at the maximum displacement and that they were
measured exactly one cycle apart. If one relates this to Figure 2-8 and Equations (2-47) or (2-48) then
expressions for the amplitude at each measurement can be determined:

2𝜋
𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 = 𝜏𝑑 =
𝜔𝑑

𝐴𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 = 𝐶𝑒 𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡

∴ 𝑥1 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡1

& 𝑥2 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡2 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 (𝑡1 +𝜏𝑑)

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Secondly, by defining the logarithmic decrement as the natural log of the ratio of the amplitudes of two
peaks:

𝑥1
δ = ln ( ) (2-54)
𝑥2
the damping ratio can be determined as follows:

𝑥1 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡1
= −𝜁𝜔 (𝑡 +𝜏 ) = 𝑒 𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝜏𝑑
𝑥2 𝐶𝑒 𝑛 1 𝑑

𝑥1 2𝜋 2𝜋 2𝜋
∴ 𝛿 = ln ( ) = ln(𝑒 𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝜏𝑑 ) = 𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝜏𝑑 = 𝜁𝜔𝑛 = 𝜁𝜔𝑛 =𝜁
𝑥2 𝜔𝑑 𝜔𝑛 √1 − 𝜁 2 √1 − 𝜁 2

𝛿 200
∴𝜁= , 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝛿 = ln ( ) = 0.288
√4𝜋 2 + 𝛿 2 150

∴ 𝜁 = 0.046

2.5. Forced vibration

So far, the systems presented have been left on their own to vibrate freely after an initial disturbance set
them in motion. What happens though if a force is continually imposed on a system during its vibration?
It was shown that a constantly acting force, such as gravity, can be safely ignored so long as everything is
referenced to the equilibrium position. However, if the external force applied is not constant, but
periodic, then it will have a definite influence on the vibration response.

2.5.1. Types of forced vibration

The external force exerted on a body may be due to internal causes such as rotating imbalances (though
the external force would come from the normal reactive force exerted by the supports e.g. bearings in
the case of a shaft), applied directly to the body such as a hand rocking a cradle, or applied through the
spring and/or damper elements such as in the case of a vehicle suspension system. The value of the force
may be known, or in the case of base excitation, it may need to be calculated from a related motion. In
any of these cases, the force may be defined as a function of time.

Any non-constant function will affect vibration response. However, sustained periodic forces is of main
interest. Non-periodic forces are sometimes interesting in setting up initial conditions (such as step, ramp
or impulse functions) but thereafter the motion is governed by the equations of a free vibration system.
Periodic functions can take many forms such as square waves, triangle wave or saw tooth functions. There

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are also random functions, such as one might experience during an earthquake. This is of course
impossible to analyse in a predictive manner, however with some analysis and assumptions about a
system and the nature of the random force, some statements about the limits of the response can be
made. This course will focus on harmonic forcing functions (or exciting forces) of the form:

𝐹 = 𝐹0 sin(𝜔𝑡) (2-55)

or

𝐹 = 𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-56)

where 𝐹0 is the amplitude of the forcing function and 𝜔 is its frequency. If we consider the mass-spring-
damper system in Figure 2-7 and apply a periodic force of the form 𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) to it, a force balance yields:

𝑚𝑥̈ + 𝑐𝑥̇ + 𝑘𝑥 = 𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-57)

which can be written as:

𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-58)
𝑥̈ + 2𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑥̇ + 𝜔𝑛2 𝑥 =
𝑚
by substituting for the natural frequency and the damping ratio. Note that both the natural frequency and
the forcing function frequency appear and it is important to differentiate between the two.

2.5.2. General solution for harmonic forced vibration

Consider the equation of motion given by Equation (2-58). Note that the equation is a non-homogenous
second order differential equation. Recall that the general solution for a non-homogenous system consists
of the sum of the complementary solution, 𝑥𝑐 , and the particular solution, 𝑥𝑝 .

In this case, the complementary solution is the solution to the homogenous system i.e. when the right
hand side of Equation (2-58) is zero. The complementary solution is also known as the transient solution
as it will die away with time, leaving only the particular solution. The particular solution is therefore also
known as the steady state solution and is of particular interest. To solve Equation (2-58), because the
exciting force is harmonic the solution is also expected to be harmonic. Therefore, as before, attempt a
solution of the form:

𝑥𝑝 = 𝑋1 cos(𝜔𝑡) + 𝑋2 sin(𝜔𝑡) (2-59)

or

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𝑥𝑝 = 𝑋 sin(𝜔𝑡 + 𝜙) (2-60)

or

𝑥𝑝 = 𝑋 cos(𝜔𝑡 − 𝜓) (2-61)

Differentiate to obtain 𝑥̇ 𝑝 and 𝑥̈ 𝑝 , substitute these into Equation (2-58), and (with some effort and
knowledge of trigonometry) solve for 𝑋1 and 𝑋2 , or 𝑋 and 𝜙, or 𝑋 and 𝜓.

In this course, it is recommended that the solutions of the later two forms are used i.e. for forcing
functions of the form 𝐹0 sin(𝜔𝑡) the solution is given by:

𝑥𝑝 = 𝑋 sin(𝜔𝑡 − 𝜙) (2-62)

and for forcing functions of the form 𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) the solution is given by:

𝑥𝑝 = 𝑋 cos(𝜔𝑡 − 𝜓) (2-63)

where

𝐹0
𝑋= 𝑘
2 (2-64)
2 2
√(1 − 𝜔 2 ) + (2𝜁 𝜔 )
𝜔𝑛 𝜔𝑛

and

𝜔2
1−
𝜔𝑛2 (2-65)
𝜙 = arctan 𝜔
2𝜁 𝜔
( 𝑛 )

𝜔
2𝜁 𝜔
𝜓 = arctan ( 𝑛
) (2-66)
𝜔2
1− 2
𝜔𝑛

2.5.3. Undamped forced vibration

For undamped forced vibration, 𝜁 = 0 and the particular solution for forcing functions of the form
𝐹0 cos(𝜔𝑡) reduces to:

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𝐹0
𝑥𝑝 = 𝑘 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-67)
𝜔2
1− 2
𝜔𝑛
Which is essentially vibration at the same frequency as the applied force, and with the amplitude
determined by the applied force, spring stiffness and the ratio of the applied frequency and the natural
𝜔
frequency of the system i.e. 𝑟 = 𝜔 . Comparing the amplitude of the resultant motion to that which would
𝑛

be obtained if the force was static, the magnification factor, 𝑀, is defined in Equation (2-68) and plotted
in Figure 2-9 as a function of the frequency ratio.

𝐹0
( 𝑘 2)
𝜔
1− 2 (2-68)
𝑋 𝜔𝑛 1
𝑀= = =
𝛿𝑠𝑡 𝐹 𝜔2
( 𝑜) 1− 2
𝑘 𝜔𝑛

Figure 2-9: Magnification factor of an undamped system, taken from Rao (2011)

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Figure 2-9 shows that the behaviour of the system changes dramatically depending of the ratio of the
applied frequency to the natural frequency:

𝜔
• For 0 < 𝜔 < 1, the harmonic response of the system is said to be in phase with the external
𝑛

force. Towards the lower range, the value of 𝑀 is approximately unity and so the amplitude of
vibration is approximately that of the static deflection.
𝜔
• For 𝜔 > 1, the harmonic response of the system is said to be out of phase with the external force.
𝑛

As the ratio increases, the resultant motion becomes smaller.

𝜔
• When = 1, the value of 𝑀 approaches infinity and this phenomenon is known as resonance.
𝜔𝑛

In this case, the response of the system will increase linearly with time and the system will be
destroyed.

Recalling that the total solution is the sum of the complementary (transient) and particular (steady-state)
solutions, using Equation (2-12) for our complementary solution (other forms of the solution may also be
used), the total motion of the system can be expressed by:

𝑥 = 𝐴 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝐵 sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝑋 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-69)

which becomes the following after solving for initial conditions:

𝐹0
𝑥̇ 0 𝑘 (cos(𝜔𝑡) − cos(𝜔 𝑡))
𝑥= sin(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝑥0 cos(𝜔𝑛 𝑡) + 𝑛 (2-70)
𝜔𝑛 𝜔2
1− 2
𝜔𝑛
Note that the motion is composed of the superposition of the natural and applied frequencies. If these
frequencies are quite different, then the motion resembles the lower frequency experiencing
disturbances at the higher frequency, as shown in Figure 2-10 and Figure 2-11.

𝜔
Figure 2-10: Total system response for undamped forced vibration where 𝜔 < 1, taken from Rao (2011)
𝑛

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𝜔
Figure 2-11: Total system response for undamped forced vibration where > 1, taken from Rao (2011)
𝜔𝑛

If the frequencies become quite similar, however, then the motion may resemble something different,
known as beating. Beating is easily explained by assuming initial conditions 𝑥0 = 𝑥̇ 0 = 0, Equation (2-70)
then becomes:

𝐹0
𝑥= 𝑘 (cos(𝜔𝑡) − cos(𝜔 𝑡)) (2-71)
𝑛
𝜔2
1− 2
𝜔𝑛
Using trigonometric identifies, this may be re-written as:

𝐹0
𝑥= 𝑘 [2sin (𝜔 + 𝜔𝑛 𝑡) sin (𝜔𝑛 − 𝜔 𝑡)] (2-72)
𝜔2 2 2
1− 2
𝜔𝑛
Then, for 𝜔 ≈ 𝜔𝑛 but slightly larger, let 𝜀 be a small positive quantity:

𝜔𝑛 − 𝜔
𝜀= (2-73)
2
𝜔+𝜔𝑛
And since sin ( 2
𝑡) ≈ sin(𝜔𝑡):

2𝐹0
𝑥 = ( 𝑘 2 sin(𝜀𝑡)) sin(𝜔𝑡) (2-74)
𝜔
1− 2
𝜔𝑛

The motion described by Equation (2-74) is shown in Figure 2-12 and represents a vibration with the
applied frequency but variable amplitude. This occurs because the natural and applied frequency terms
go in and out of phase, resulting in a maximum amplitude where 𝑋 is doubled and a minimum where 𝑋 is
cancelled out.

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Figure 2-12: Beating phenomenon in an undamped forced system

Referring to Figure 2-12, the time between points of zero amplitude (or maximum amplitude) is the period
beating, 𝜏𝑏 , given by:

2𝜋 2𝜋 (2-75)
𝜏𝑏 = =
2𝜀 𝜔𝑛 − 𝜔

and therefore the beating frequency, 𝜔𝑏 , is given by:

𝜔𝑏 = 𝜔𝑛 − 𝜔 (2-76)

2.5.4. Damped forced vibration

Introducing damping into our system, the total solution for underdamped motion may be given by:

𝑥 = 𝐶𝑒 −𝜁𝜔𝑛 𝑡 cos(𝜔𝑑 𝑡 − 𝜓𝑐 ) + 𝑋 cos(𝜔𝑡 − 𝜓𝑝 ) (2-77)

Here it is a little bit easier to see how the transient behaviour from the complementary solution dies off
with time (from the negatively raised exponential term), leaving only the particular solution. If one is
interested in the initial transient behaviour then it is important to retain the total solution when
substituting initial conditions. However, if one is primarily interested in the steady state solution once the
system settles, then consider once again the magnification factor:

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𝐹0
𝑘
2 2 2
√(1 − 𝜔 2 ) + (2𝜁 𝜔 ) (2-78)
𝑋 𝜔𝑛 𝜔𝑛 1
( )
𝑀= = =
𝛿𝑠𝑡 𝐹
( 𝑜) 2 2 2
𝑘 √(1 − 𝜔 2 ) + (2𝜁 𝜔 )
𝜔𝑛 𝜔𝑛

The magnification factor for damped forced vibration is plotted as a function of the frequency ratio in
Figure 2-13. As expected, for very small values of damping ratios, the maximum magnification is very close
to a frequency ratio of unity. However, as the amount of damping increases, the magnification decreases.
For underdamped systems, the magnification factor first increases with increased frequency ratio and
then decreases to some minimum. For critically and overdamped systems, the maximum magnification
occurs as the frequency ratio tends to zero, and only decreases with increased frequency ratio.

Figure 2-13: Magnification factor of a damped system, taken from Rao (2011)

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In addition to plotting the magnification factor as a function of frequency ratio. The phase angle, 𝜓, as
defined in Equation (2-66), can be plotted as shown in Figure 2-14. The phase angle can be interpreted as
𝜋
the difference in timing between the response and the applied force. When 0 < 𝜓 < 2 , the response lags
𝜋
the excitation and for 2 < 𝜓 < 𝜋, the response leads the excitation. Note that lower magnifications occur

as the response leads the excitation, up until the point where the response and excitation is directly out
of phase at 𝜓 = 𝜋. This means that the force is applied with maximum magnitude in the positive direction
whenever the mass experiences its maximum deflection in the negative direction and vice versa.

Figure 2-14: Phase angle of damped system, taken from Rao (2011)

If one now considers the response of a system in the context of designing a method of vibration
absorption, it can be seen that the response may be reduced at low frequencies by increasing the

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damping. A high spring stiffness may also be desired to keep the static deflection low. For higher
frequencies, it may be sufficient to have low levels of damping, as the response is significantly lower than
the equivalent static deflection. However, operating at high speeds means that the system will have to
pass through the resonance frequency. In this case, it is beneficial to keep the natural frequency as low as
possible. To do so, the stiffness may be decreased or the mass may be increased. For the former, the static
deflection and the damping ratio is increased, both of which are undesirable if one intends on taking
advantage of the high speed response reduction. For the later, the damping ratio is decreased, taking
advantage of the high speed response reduction. However, it is then more important to quickly accelerate
through the resonant frequency to reduce the response in this region.

EXAMPLE 2.4

𝑚
Consider the machine in the figure below with total mass 𝑀 and two masses with eccentricity 𝑒 rotating
2

in opposite directions with constant angular velocity 𝜔. Determine:

(a) An expression for the response of the machine at steady state.

(b) The maximum force transmitted to the base.

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[worked example solutions are provided in class]

2.5.5. Base excitation through a spring

In many practical cases, the mass is excited by the movement of a base or foundation through the spring
and/or damper elements. In these cases, the equation of motion should be derived and compared to that
presented in Equation (2-58) to determine the appropriate solution.

Consider the specific case in Figure 2-15 where excitation is applied through a spring. In this case, the
equation of motion is given by:

𝑚𝑥̈ + 𝑐𝑥̇ + 𝑘𝑥 = 𝑘𝑏 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-79)

where 𝒃 is the amplitude of the excitation applied. Note that this equation is almost exactly the same as
Equation (2-57), the only difference being that 𝐹0 is substituted by 𝑘𝑏. Consequently, the solutions
presented above for damped forced vibration may be used by applying the same substitution.

Figure 2-15: Base excitation through a spring

2.5.6. Base excitation measuring applications

Instruments such as seismometers and accelerometers are examples of how vibration theory is applied in
real life. In these instruments, or systems designed to measure vibrations, the entire system is subjected
to the movement of a base. An example of such a system is shown in Figure 2-16 and its equation of
motion is given by:

𝑚𝑥̈ + 𝑐𝑥̇ + 𝑘𝑥 = 𝑚𝑏𝜔2 cos(𝜔𝑡) (2-80)

which, again, is almost exactly the same as Equation (2-57), the only difference being that 𝐹0 is substituted
by 𝑚𝑏𝜔2. For this case, the solutions presented above for damped forced vibration may again be used by
applying the same substitution, however it is worth presenting the steady state amplitude of the relative
response (𝑿) of the system, and relating this to the magnification factor as given in Equation (2-78):

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𝜔 2
𝑏 (𝜔 )
𝑛
𝑋= (2-81)
2
𝜔2
√(1 − 2 ) + (2𝜁 𝜔 )
2

𝜔𝑛 𝜔𝑛

𝑋 𝜔 2
∴ =( ) 𝑀 (2-82)
𝑏 𝜔𝑛

Figure 2-16: Schematic of a vibration measuring device

𝜔
If the spring stiffness is relatively low and the mass relatively large, then a high value of is obtained
𝜔𝑛

𝑘 𝑋
since 𝜔𝑛 = √𝑚. For this case, where the driving frequency ratio is large, 𝑏 is close to unity for all values

of damping ratio and the displacement of the mass is close to the displacement of the frame and the
instrument acts as a displacement meter. Displacement meters usually have very light damping.
𝑏𝜔2
For small driving frequency ratios, 𝑀 approaches unity such that 𝑋 ≈ 𝜔𝑛2 . For this case, since 𝑏𝜔2 is the

maximum acceleration of the frame, the amplitude of oscillation of the mass is proportional to the
maximum acceleration of the frame and the instrument acts as an accelerometer. The damping ratio is
chosen such that 𝑀 is close to unity over the widest possible range of driving frequencies. Damping ratios
within the range of 0.2 < 𝜁 < 1 meet this criterion.

EXAMPLE 2.5

The figure below shows a seismic instrument attached to a structure which vibrates (harmonically) at 3
Hz. The instrument consists of a mass of 0.75 kg, a spring with stiffness of 30 N/m and a viscous damper
with a coefficient of 3 Ns/m. The maximum recorded value of 𝑥 in steady state motion is 2 mm. Determine

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the amplitude of the horizontal movement of the structure. What kind of instrument is this, a
displacement meter or an accelerometer?

[worked example solutions are provided in class]

Review questions

1. Two term solutions and single term phase shifted analytical solutions may be used to solve the
equation of motion of a vibration system. What is the difference between these solutions?
2. May the solutions for undamped vibration systems be used for damped vibration systems?
3. In words, define the magnification factor?
4. Explain resonance, why it is undesirable and how it can be avoided.
5. Explain the beating phenomenon.
6. What is the difference between the complimentary solution and the particular solution?

References and additional readings

Meriam, J.L. & Kraige, L.G. 2006. Engineering Mechanics: Dynamics. 6th ed. Wiley.

Rao, S.S. 2011. Mechanical Vibrations. 5th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

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