Control strategy of the lever-type active multiple tuned mass dampers for structures

Abstract

The lever-type active multiple tuned mass dampers (LT-AMTMD), consisting of several lever-type active tuned mass dampers (LT-ATMD), is proposed in this paper to attenuate the vibrations of long-span bridges under the excitation directly acting on the structure, rather than through the base. With resorting to the derived analytical-expressions for the dynamic magnification factors of the LT-AMTMD structure system, the performance assessment then is conducted on the LT-AMTMD with the identical stiffness and damping coefficient but unequal mass. Numerical results indicate that the LT-AMTMD with the actuator set at the mass block can provide better effectiveness in reducing the vibrations of long-span bridges compared to the LT-AMTMD with the actuator set at other locations. An appealing feature of the LT-AMTMD with the actuator set at the mass block is that the static stretching of the spring may be freely adjusted in accordance with the practical requirements through changing the location of the support within the viable range while maintaining the same performance (including the same stroke displacement). Likewise, it is shown that the LT-AMTMD with the actuator set at the mass block can further ameliorate the performance of the lever-type multiple tuned mass dampers (LT-MTMD) and has higher effectiveness than a single lever-type active tuned mass damper (LT-ATMD). Therefore, the LT-AMTMD with the actuator set at the mass block may be a better means of suppressing the vibrations of long-span bridges with the consequence of not requiring the large static stretching of the spring and possessing a desirable robustness.