Nonlinear interaction of parametric excitation and self-excited vibration in a 4 DoF discontinuous system

Abstract

Interaction between parametric excitation and self-excited vibration has been subjected to numerous investigations in continuous systems. The ability of parametric excitation to quench self-excited vibrations in such systems has also been well documented. But such effects in discontinuous systems do not seem to have received comparable attention. In this article, we investigate the interaction between parametric excitation and self-excited vibration in a four degree of freedom discontinuous mechanical system. Unlike majority of studies in which oscillatory nature of stiffness accounts for parametric excitation, we consider a much more practical case in which parametric excitation is provided by a massless rotor of rectangular cross section with a cylinder-like mass concentrated at the center. The rotor arrangement is placed on a friction-induced self-excited support in the form of a frame placed on a belt moving with constant velocity. This frame is connected to a supplementary mass. A Stribeck friction model is considered for the mass in contact with the belt. The frictional force between the mass and the belt is oscillatory in nature because of the variation of normal force due to parametric excitation from the rotor. Our investigations reveal mutual synchronization of parametric excitation and self-excited vibration in the system for specific parameter values. The existence of a stable limit cycle with constant synchronized fundamental frequency, for a range of parametric excitation frequencies, is established numerically. Investigation based on frequency spectra and Lissajous curves reveals complex synchronization patterns owing to the presence of higher harmonics. The system is also shown to exhibit Neimark–Sacker bifurcations under the variation of belt velocity. Furthermore, variation in belt velocity and coupling stiffness is seen to cause a breakup of quasi-periodic torus with small-amplitude oscillations to form large amplitude chaotic orbits. This points toward the possibility of vibration suppression in the system by tuning the parameters for stabilizing the small-amplitude quasi-periodic response. An example of co-existence of different attractors in the system is also presented.