A Magnetorheological Actuation System - Part II: Modeling

Abstract

There is a demand for hybrid actuation systems which combines actuation and valving systems in a compact package. Such self-contained actuation systems can be used in the field of rotorcraft as active pitch links and in the field of automotive engineering as active vibration control devices. MR fluids can be used in valves to control the motion of an output cylinder. Such a valving system will have no moving parts and thus can be used in applications where there is high centrifugal loading. In the current setup, MR valves are configured in the form of a Wheatstone bridge and bidirectional motion is produced in the output cylinder by alternate application of magnetic field in the arms of the wheatstone bridge. The actuation is performed using a compact Terfenol-D stack driven actuator. The frequency rectification of the stack motion is done using reed valves. This actuator and valve configuration form a compact hydraulic system with fluidic valves. The advantages of such systems are low parts count, absence of moving parts and the ability to control the motion of the output cylinder by controlling the fluid flow through the MR valves. By the application of different magnetic fields to the arms of the bridge (by applying different currents to the magnetic circuits), we can control the differential pressure seen by the output cylinder. This add the capability of designing controllers for the system. This work concentrates on the modeling of the entire actuation system performance. The results of the modeling effort is then compared with experimental results. The system is modeled by ordinary differential equations governing the motion of the active stack, fluid in the different sections and the output cylinder shaft. The rheological properties of the MR fluid is modeled using both Bingham plastic and bi-viscous models.