Dynamic Concepts, Inc.

Vibrationdata
Huntsville, Alabama

Vibrationdata

THE NASA ENGINEERING & SAFETY CENTER (NESC)

SHOCK & VIBRATION TRAINING PROGRAM

By Tom Irvine

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Dr. Curtis Larsen Vibrationdata

Dr. Curtis E. Larsen is the NASA Technical Fellow for Loads

and Dynamics

He is the head of the the NASA Engineering & Safety Center

(NESC) Loads & Dynamics Technical Disciplines Team (TDT)

Thank you to Dr. Larsen for supporting this webinars!

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NASA ENGINEERING & SAFETY CENTER (NESC) Vibrationdata

• NESC is an independently funded program with a dedicated

team of technical experts

• NESC was Formed in 2003 in response to the Space Shuttle

Columbia Accident Investigation

• NESC’s fundamental purpose is provide to objective

engineering and safety assessments of critical, high-risk
NASA projects to ensure safety and mission success

• The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958

• NESC is expanding its services to benefit United States:

Military
Government Agencies
Commercial Space

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NESC Services
Vibrationdata

• NESC Engineers Provide a Second Pair of Eyes

• Design and Analysis Reviews

• Test Support

• Flight Accelerometer Data Analysis

• Tutorial Papers

• Perform Research as Needed

• NESC Academy, Educational Outreach

http://www.nasa.gov/offices/nesc/academy/

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Preliminary Instructions Vibrationdata

• You may ask questions during the presentation

• Otherwise set your phones to mute

• These presentations including your questions and comments are being recorded
for redistribution

• If you are not already on my distribution list, please send and Email to:

tom@vibrationdata.com

• You may also contact me via Email for off-line questions

• Please visit: http://vibrationdata.wordpress.com/

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Unit 1A Vibrationdata

Natural Frequencies:

Calculation, Measurement, and Excitation

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 Measuring Frequency Vibrationdata
TUNING FORK A note

0.4
44 peaks / 0.1 seconds = 440 Hz

0.2
SOUND PRESSURE

-0.2

-0.4
0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10

TIME (SEC)
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Basic Definitions Vibrationdata

 Natural Frequency

The natural frequency is the frequency at which a mass will vibrate if it is given
an initial displacement and then released so that it may vibrate freely.

This free vibration is also called "simple harmonic motion, " assuming no
damping.

An object has both mass and stiffness.

The spring stiffness will try to snap the object back to its rest position if the
object is given an initial displacement. The inertial effect of the mass, however,
will not allow the object to stop immediately at the rest position. Thus, the
object “overshoots” its mark.

The mass and stiffness forces balance out to provide the natural frequency.

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Basic Definitions (continued)
Vibrationdata
 Damping

Consider a mass that is vibrating freely. The mass will eventually return to
its rest position. This decay is referred to as "damping.“

Damping may be due to

viscous sources
dry friction
aerodynamic drag
acoustic radiation
air pumping at joints
boundary damping

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 Basic Definitions (continued)
Vibrationdata
 Single-degree-of-freedom System (SDOF)

A single-degree-of-freedom system is a system which only has one natural

frequency. Engineers often idealize complex systems as single-degree-of-
freedom systems.

 Multi-degree-of-freedom System (MDOF)

A multi-degree-of-freedom system is a system which has more than one natural
frequency.

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Earth EARTH'S NATURAL FREQUENCY

Vibrationdata
The Earth experiences seismic
vibration.

The fundamental natural frequency

of the Earth is 309.286 micro Hertz.

This is equivalent to a period of

3233.25 seconds, or approximately
54 minutes.

Reference: T. Lay and T. Wallace,

Modern Global Seismology,
Academic Press, New York, 1995.

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Golden Gate Bridge Vibrationdata

Steel Suspension Bridge

Total Length = 8980 ft

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 Golden Gate Bridge Vibrationdata
 In addition to traffic loading, the Golden Gate Bridge must withstand the
following environments:

1. Earthquakes, primarily originating on the San Andreas and Hayward

faults
2. Winds of up to 70 miles per hour
3. Strong ocean currents

 The Golden Gate Bridge has performed well in all earthquakes to date,
including the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. Several phases of seismic
retrofitting have been performed since the initial construction.

 Note that current Caltrans standards require bridges to withstand an

equivalent static earthquake force (EQ) of 2.0 G.

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Golden Gate Bridge Natural Frequencies Vibrationdata

Mode Type Period of Natural

vibration Frequency
(sec) (Hz)

Transverse 18.2 0.055

Vertical 10.9 0.092
Longitudinal 3.81 0.262
Torsional 4.43 0.226

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SDOF System Examples - Pendulum Vibrationdata

g
L
m = mass
L = length
 g = gravity
m  = angular displacement

The natural frequency ωn for a pendulum is

ωn  g
L

The natural frequency has dimensions of radians/time. The

typical unit is radians/second.

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SDOF System
Spring-Mass System
Vibrationdata

X m = mass
k = spring stiffness
c = damping coefficient
m X = displacement

k c

The natural frequency for a spring-mass system is

ωn  k
m

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SDOF System Examples Vibrationdata
Cantilever Beam with End Mass

EI, 

E is the modulus of elasticity  is the beam mass per length

I is the area moment of inertia m is the end mass
L is the length

fn  1 3 EI
2π 0.2235 ρL  m  L3
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Circuit Board Natural Frequencies Vibrationdata
Circuit Boards are often Modeled as Single-degree-of-freedom Systems

Component Fundamental
Frequency (Hz)
CEP 65
PSSL 210
MUX 220
PDU 225
PCM Encoder 395
TVC 580

Average = 328 Hz
Std Dev = 203 Hz
Range = 65 Hz to 600 Hz

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More Formulas Vibrationdata
ωn  2 π fn

fn  ωn
2π

The variable is the natural frequency in cycles/time. The typical unit

is cycles/second, which is called Hertz. The unit Hertz is abbreviated
as Hz.

Note that the period T is the period is the time required for one
complete cycle of oscillation

T 1
fn

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Recommended Text
Vibrationdata

Dave S. Steinberg

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SDOF System
Vibrationdata

M = 0.71 kg

K = 350 N/mm

fn = 111.7 Hz

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SDOF Animation. File: sdof_fna.avi
(click on image)
Vibrationdata

fn = 111.7 Hz

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Two DOF System
Vibrationdata

M2 = 0.71 kg

K2 = 175 N/mm

M1 = 0.71 kg

K1 = 350 N/mm

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Two DOF System Animation
Files: tdofm1.avi & tdofm2.avi
(click on images)
Vibrationdata

Mode 1 Mode 2
f1 = 60.4 Hz f2 = 146 Hz
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Astronaut Vibrationdata

Spring-loaded chair device for measuring astronaut's mass

The chair oscillates at a natural frequency which is dependent on the astronaut's

mass.

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 Resonance Vibrationdata

 Resonance occurs when the applied force or base excitation frequency coincides
with the system's natural frequency.

 As an example, a bulkhead natural frequency might be excited by a motor

pressure oscillation.

 During resonant vibration, the response displacement may increase until the
structure experiences buckling, yielding, fatigue, or some other failure
mechanism.

 The Tacoma Narrows Bridge failure is often cited as an example of resonant

vibration. In reality, it was a case of self-excited vibration.

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 Excitation Methods Vibrationdata
There are four methods by which a structure's natural frequency may be excited:
1. Applied Pressure or Force
Hammer strikes mass
Modal Test
Bat hits baseball, exciting bat’s natural frequencies
Airflow or wind excites structure such as an aircraft
wing
Ocean waves excite offshore structure
Rotating mass imbalance in motor
Pressure oscillation in rocket motor
2. Base Excitation
Vehicle traveling down washboard road
Earthquake excites building
A machine tool or optical microscope is excited by floor excitation
Shaker Table Test

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Excitation Methods (Continued) Vibrationdata

3. Self-excited Instability
Airfoil or Bridge Flutter

4. Initial Displacement or Velocity

Plucking guitar string
Pegasus drop transient
Accidental drop of object onto floor

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Base Excitation
Vibrationdata

Courtesy of UCSB and R. Kruback

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1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake Vibrationdata

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LOMA PRIETA EARTHQUAKE (continued) Vibrationdata
The earthquake caused the Cypress Viaduct to collapse, resulting in 42 deaths. The
Viaduct was a raised freeway which was part of the Nimitz freeway in Oakland, which
is Interstate 880. The Viaduct had two traffic decks.

Resonant vibration caused 50 of the 124 spans of the Viaduct to collapse. The
reinforced concrete frames of those spans were mounted on weak soil. As a result,
the natural frequency of those spans coincided with the forcing frequency of the
earthquake ground motion. The Viaduct structure thus amplified the ground motion.
The spans suffered increasing vertical motion. Cracks formed in the support frames.
Finally, the upper roadway collapsed, slamming down on the lower road.

The remaining spans which were mounted on firm soil withstood the earthquake.

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 Vibrationdata

Pegasus Vehicle

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Pegasus
Drop Video Vibrationdata

(click on image)

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Pegasus Vibrationdata

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Pegasus Drop Transient Vibrationdata
Fundamental Bending Mode
PEGASUS REX2 S3-5 PAYLOAD INTERFACE Z-AXIS
5 TO 15 Hz BP FILTERED

2.5
y=1.55*exp(-0.64*(x-0.195))
2.0 Flight Data
1.5

1.0

0.5
ACCEL (G)

-0.5

-1.0
fn = 9.9 Hz
-1.5 damp = 1.0%

-2.0

-2.5
0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0

TIME (SEC) 35
 Boeing 747
Wind Tunnel Test Vibrationdata
Boeing 747 – Flutter_747.avi

(click on image)

Flutter – combined bending and torsional motion.

(Courtesy of Smithsonian Air & Space. Used with permission.)

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More Flutter Videos
Vibrationdata

(Courtesy of Smithsonian Air & Space. Used with permission.)

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 Tacoma
Narrows Bridge Vibrationdata

Torsional Mode at 0.2 Hz - Aerodynamic Self-excitation

Wind Speed = 42 miles per hour. Amplitude = 28 feet

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Tacoma
Narrows Bridge Failure Vibrationdata

November 7, 1940

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Helicopter Ground Resonance Vibrationdata

f(t)

m
m

k c

A new design undergoing testing may encounter severe vibration while it is on the
ground, preparing for takeoff.
As the rotor accelerates to its full operating speed, a structural natural frequency of
the helicopter may be excited.
This condition is called resonant excitation.

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TH-55 Osage, Military Version of the
Hughes 269A
Vibrationdata

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 Guidance Systems Vibrationdata
 Consider a rocket vehicle with a closed-loop guidance system.

 The autopilot has an internal navigation system which uses accelerometers and
gyroscopes to determine the vehicle's attitude and direction.
 The navigation system then sends commands to actuators which rotate the
exhaust nozzle to steer the vehicle during its powered flight.

 Feedback sensors measure the position of the nozzle. The data is sent back to
the navigation computer.
 Unfortunately, the feedback sensors, accelerometers, and gyroscopes could be
affected by the vehicle's vibration. Specifically, instability could result if the
vibration frequency coincides with the control frequency.

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SHOCK PULSE
Vibrationdata

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 Response Spectra Concept
Vibrationdata

Soft Hard

Natural Frequencies (Hz):

0.063 0.125 0.25 0.50 1.0 2.0 4.0

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Unit 1A Exercise 1 Vibrationdata
 A particular circuit board can be modeled as a single-degree-of-freedom system.

 Its weight is 0.1 pounds.

 Its stiffness is 400 pounds per inch.

 Calculate the natural frequency using Matlab script:

vibrationdata > miscellaneous functions > Structural Dynamics >

SDOF System Natural Frequency

Script is posted at:

http://vibrationdata.wordpress.com/2013/05/29/vibrationdata-matlab-signal-analysis-package/

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 Unit 1A Exercise 2
Vibrationdata

 A rocket vehicle is carried underneath an aircraft. It experiences an initial

displacement because gravity causes it to bow downward while it is attached to the
aircraft. It is suddenly released and allowed to vibrate freely as it falls. It continues
falling for about 5 seconds prior to its motor ignition, as a safety precaution.

 An acceleration time history of the drop is given in file: drop.txt.

 Plot using script: vibrationdata > Statistics

 Determine the natural frequency by counting the peaks and dividing the sum by time.

 Estimate damping using script: sinefdam.m

http://vibrationdata.wordpress.com/2013/04/26/curve-fitting-one-or-more-sine-functions/

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Unit 1A Exercise 3
Vibrationdata

A flagpole is made from steel pipe.

The height is 180 inches.

The pipe O.D. is 3 inches.
The wall thickness is 0.25 inches.

The boundary conditions are fixed-free.

Determine the fundamental lateral frequency.

Use script: vibrationdata > miscellaneous functions > Structural Dynamics >

Beam Natural Frequency & Base Excitation Response

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First Three Modes of Flagpole
Vibrationdata

Mode 1 Mode 2 Mode 3

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Unit 1A Exercise 4 Tuning Fork Vibrationdata

Determine the natural frequency of the tuning fork.

The file is: tuning_fork.txt

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