Scribd
Upload
1K views2 pages

Spring-Mass-Damper System Analysis

1) The document describes a spring-mass-damper system with a mass (m) attached to a spring (with constant K) and damper (with coefficient B). The system is governed by a second order differential equation relating the mass position (y) to applied force (u), spring force, and damper force. 2) Taking the Laplace transform of the differential equation yields a transfer function relating the output position (y) to the input force (u). Poles of the system are obtained by setting the denominator of the transfer function to zero and provide information about system dynamics. 3) The response of the system to initial conditions without input is derived. The document also discusses analyzing the system response to

Uploaded by

Divya Bharathi S
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
1K views2 pages

Spring-Mass-Damper System Analysis

1) The document describes a spring-mass-damper system with a mass (m) attached to a spring (with constant K) and damper (with coefficient B). The system is governed by a second order differential equation relating the mass position (y) to applied force (u), spring force, and damper force. 2) Taking the Laplace transform of the differential equation yields a transfer function relating the output position (y) to the input force (u). Poles of the system are obtained by setting the denominator of the transfer function to zero and provide information about system dynamics. 3) The response of the system to initial conditions without input is derived. The document also discusses analyzing the system response to

Uploaded by

Divya Bharathi S
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Middle East Technical University Department of Aerospace Engineering

AEE 582 Supplementary Notes Fall 2009 Dr. Ali Türker Kutay

Spring-Mass-Damper System Example


Consider the following spring-mass system:

𝑚: mass in kg
𝑦 𝑦 𝑦: position in m
𝐾𝑦 𝑢: control input in N
𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢
𝐵𝑦 𝐾: linear spring constant in N/m
𝐵: damping coefficient in Ns/m

Motion of the mass under the applied control, spring, and damping forces is governed by the following
second order linear ordinary differential equation (ODE):

𝑚𝑦 + 𝐵𝑦 + 𝐾𝑦 = 𝑢 (1)
Taking the Laplace transform of (2) yields the following transfer function from the input 𝑢 to the output 𝑦:

𝑦 𝑠 1
𝐺 𝑠 = = 2
(2)
𝑢 𝑠 𝑚𝑠 + 𝐵𝑠 + 𝐾
Setting the denominator of the transfer function to zero yields the characteristic equation of the above
system:

𝑚𝑠2 + 𝐵𝑠 + 𝐾 = 0 (3)
Roots of the characteristic equation are called the poles of the system and give important information
about the dynamic characteristics of the system. Poles of a system can be
𝑝1 = 𝑎1
real (imaginary part equal to zero): 𝑝 = 𝑎
2 2

𝑝1 = 𝑎 + 𝑏𝑖
or complex (nonzero imaginary part):
𝑝2 = 𝑎 − 𝑏𝑖
Response to Initial Conditions
Response of a second order system to nonzero initial conditions with no control input can be obtained by
solving (2) with 𝑢 = 0.
For real poles the solution is
1
𝑐1 = 𝑎 −𝑎
𝑎2 𝑦 0 − 𝑦 ′ 0
𝑎1𝑡 𝑎2 𝑡 2 1
𝑦 𝑡 = 𝑐1 𝑒 + 𝑐2 𝑒 with 1
𝑐2 = 𝑎 2 −𝑎 1
−𝑎1 𝑦 0 + 𝑦 ′ 0

where 𝑦 0 and 𝑦 ′ 0 are the initial position and velocity.


For complex poles the solution is
𝑐1 = 𝑦 0
𝑦 𝑡 = 𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑐1 cos 𝑏𝑡 + 𝑐2 sin 𝑏𝑡 with 𝑎 1
𝑐2 = − 𝑦 0 + 𝑦 ′ 0
𝑏 𝑏

For the mass-spring system poles are obtained from (3) as

Page 1 of 2
Middle East Technical University Department of Aerospace Engineering
AEE 582 Supplementary Notes Fall 2009 Dr. Ali Türker Kutay

−𝐵 ± 𝐵2 − 4𝑚𝐾
𝑝1,2 =
2𝑚
Complex poles (oscillatory response) occur for 𝐵 < 4𝑚𝐾.

Exercise: Important if you are not familiar with Matlab! Study the response of the mass-spring system to
various initial conditions using the Matlab file SpringMassInit.m. Observe the open-loop pole locations and
system response for
a) Keep 𝑚 = 0.1 and 𝐾 = 1 constant and run the file for 𝐵 = 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.7, 0, −0.01 .
b) Keep 𝑚 = 0.1 and 𝐵 = 0.05 constant and run the file for 𝐾 = 0.2, 0.5, 1, 2.5, 0, −0.01 .

Response to Open-Loop Commands


The above analysis assumed zero control command to the system. Response of the system to open-loop
control inputs can be studied by solving (2) with the given 𝑢 𝑡 . Another way is to insert the Laplace
transform of the input signal (𝑢 𝑠 ) into (2) and get the output response in Laplace domain. The response
in time domain can then be obtained by taking the inverse Laplace transform. Usually partial fraction
expansion and Laplace tables are used for Laplace inversions. For simple wave forms (impulse, step, ramp,
sinusoids, etc.) analytical expressions for the output response may be obtained. For more complex input
signals output responses can be obtained by numerical solution.

Exercise: Study the response of the mass-spring system to various open-loop commands by using the
Simulink file [Link]. First run the initialization file SpringMassInit. Then replace the input block
“u” with the following blocks and run the simulation:
a) “Step” block in Simulink Library/Sources,
b) “Ramp” block in Simulink Library/Sources,
c) “Sine Wave” block in Simulink Library/Sources. Set the frequency of the Sine Wave to 10 rad/s.

Page 2 of 2

You might also like