Optimum Design of a Nonlinear Vibration Absorber Coupled to a Resonant Oscillator: A Case Study

<jats:p>This paper presents the optimal design of a passive autoparametric cantilever beam vibration absorber for a linear mass-spring-damper system subject to harmonic external force. The design of the autoparametric vibration absorber is obtained by using an approximation of the nonlinear frequency response function, computed via the multiple scales method. Based on the solution given by the perturbation method mentioned above, a static optimization problem is formulated in order to determine the optimum parameters (mass and length) of the nonlinear absorber which minimizes the steady state amplitude of the primary mass under resonant conditions; then, a PZT actuator is cemented to the base of the beam, so the nonlinear absorber is made active, thus enabling the possibility of controlling the effective stiffness associated with the passive absorber and, as a consequence, the implementation of an active vibration control scheme able to preserve, as possible, the autoparametric interaction as well as to compensate varying excitation frequencies and parametric uncertainty. Finally, some simulations and experimental results are included to validate and illustrate the dynamic performance of the overall system.</jats:p>