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Bionic multi-legged robots with flexible bodies embody human ingenuity in imitating, learning, and exploring the natural world. In contrast to rigid-body robots, these robots with flexible bodies exhibit superior locomotive capabilities. The flexible body of the robot not only boosts the moving speed and walking stability but also enhances adaptability across complex terrains. This article focuses on the innovative design of flexible bodies. Firstly, the structural designs, including artificial spines and single/multi-axis articulation mechanisms, are outlined systematically. Secondly, the enhancement of robotic motion by flexible bodies is reviewed, examining the impact that body degrees of freedom, stiffness, and coordinated control between the body and limbs have on robotic motion. Thirdly, existing robotic control methods, organized by control architectures, are comprehensively overviewed in this article. Finally, the application prospects of bionic multi-legged robots with flexible bodies are offered, and the challenges that may arise in their future development are listed. This article aims to serve as a reference for bionic robot research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Scientiarum Naturalium Universitatis Pekinensis is the property of Editorial Office of Acta Scientiarum Naturalium Universitatis Pekinensis and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A two-field version of the floating frame-of-reference approach is developed to describe the dynamics of a flexible body in the case of motion in a uniformly rotating frame. Full decoupling of the kinetic energy results from splitting of the motion into rigid-body modes of the floating center of mass and a velocity field orthogonal to them. The motion equations are developed from a canonical variational expression in which displacement and velocity fields play independent roles. They turn out to keep the same global structure as in the case of motion in an inertial frame. The discretization of all inertia terms is discussed in depth. It is also shown that, in the case of discretization of the continuum with 3D solid elements, all gyroscopic terms can be derived from a mass kernel and associated S i matrices. Model reduction is proposed using the Herting–Martinez method in order to automatically satisfy orthogonality of the velocity field to rigid-body modes. Two application examples of high-speed rotating systems are developed at length to assess the efficiency of the proposed methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bionic multi-legged robots with flexible bodies embody human ingenuity in imitating, learning, and exploring the natural world. In contrast to rigid-body robots, these robots with flexible bodies exhibit superior locomotive capabilities. The flexible body of the robot not only boosts the moving speed and walking stability but also enhances adaptability across complex terrains. This article focuses on the innovative design of flexible bodies. Firstly, the structural designs, including artificial spines and single/multi-axis articulation mechanisms, are outlined systematically. Secondly, the enhancement of robotic motion by flexible bodies is reviewed, examining the impact that body degrees of freedom, stiffness, and coordinated control between the body and limbs have on robotic motion. Thirdly, existing robotic control methods, organized by control architectures, are comprehensively overviewed in this article. Finally, the application prospects of bionic multi-legged robots with flexible bodies are offered, and the challenges that may arise in their future development are listed. This article aims to serve as a reference for bionic robot research.

In this study, transient analysis of flexible body motion with time-varying length is conducted using dimensionless finite element model (FEM). First, the equation of motion for a flexible body with large deformation, displacement and time-varying length is derived by VFE-ANCF, which variable-domain finite element model (VFE), a model expresses length change, applied to absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF), known as an effective nonlinear finite element method in dynamic flexible body simulation. Then the equation of motion in dimensionless form is derived using dimensionless variables defined by time-varying length of the flexible body as a representative length and a representative time considering the longitudinal frequency of the flexible body. The system is converted into the system that length of flexible body is always constant by using this representative length. So, this method avoids the problems with analysis accuracy and calculation cost when the length becomes shorter and the natural frequency increases. Furthermore, the numerical results clarify the mechanism of flexible body motion with time-varying length.

To explore the actual working characteristic of the beating-up mechanism on looms, the Step function is adopted to convert the beating-up resistance to an equivalent torque acting on the rocking shaft, and a new method of calculating and simulating the resistance is hereby raised. In accordance with the two-state joint clearance, the paper establishes a double-side model of the four-bar beating-up system in clearance status via ADAMS/View software, and under the consideration of both beating-up resistance and flexible deformation conditions, the contact simulation of beating-up motion with different clearances (0.01∼0.12 mm) is achieved. The main findings are as follows: the actual working condition could be reflected more accurately if the beating-up resistance and component flexibility are included into the simulation computing; from the perspective of the impact on sley moving and beating-up loads, 0.08 mm clearance is obviously less then another three clearances (0.01 mm, 0.04 mm and 0.12 mm); the multi-point contact and collision with peak load greater than 4000 N is existed in connecting rod bearing in the 0∼350 Hz low frequency area, which is likely to exacerbate the wear and fatigue rupture of the bearing; the dynamic shock load of rocking shaft on the loom frame is far greater than that of the crankshaft, indicating that the rocking shaft is the main carrier for delivering the beating-up power; compared to the clearance of 0.08 mm and 0.12 mm, the dynamic impact load generated by the clearance of 0.01 mm and 0.04 mm on the loom frame is obvious greater. In addition, under the clearance condition, transverse vibration could be occurred for the flexible crankshaft due to the deviation of its centroid trajectory, which is detrimental to vibration and noise reduction for the loom system. On the basis of the work, a number of viewpoints with theoretical and practical significance could be provided to the design of beating-up system on the loom with clearance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of a high-speed parallel manipulator necessitates the adoption of a lightweight design to reduce dead weight. However, this increases the elastic deformation of certain components, affecting the dynamic performance of the system. This study examined a 2-DOF planar flexible parallel manipulator. A dynamic model of the parallel manipulator composed of fully flexible links was established using a floating reference coordinate system and a combination of the finite element and augmented Lagrange multiplier methods. A dynamic analysis of the simplified model under three driving torque modes showed that the axial deformation was less than the transverse deformation by three orders of magnitude. Further, the kinematic and dynamic performance of the redundant drive was significantly better than that of the non-redundant drive, and the vibration was well suppressed in the redundant drive mode. In addition, the comprehensive performance of driving Mode 2 was better than that of the other two modes. Finally, the validity of the dynamic model was verified by modeling via Adams. The modular modeling method is conducive to the extension to other models and programming. Furthermore, the dynamic model of the established fully flexible link system can aid in optimizing the lightweight design and dynamic performance of the parallel manipulator.

Long rails are normally used in highspeed railways to minimize the number of rail joints and the dynamic impact force that follows. However, transporting long rails using a freight train requires multiple wagons for each rail section, presenting potential safety and loading gauge issues, especially when going through curves. Thus, a safety assessment needs to be done prior to actual transport. Computational simulation can be used for preliminary assessment. Finite element analysis can be used to incorporate the flexibility of the rails into the analysis but requires significant manpower and computer power to perform. In this study, an alternative method to model rail flexibility using a multibody approach is presented. The rails are sectioned into multiple rigid bodies along their length and interconnected using rotational joints. The stiffness coefficient of the joints is defined as a function of the actual rail’s physical properties. This modelling technique results in a simplified multibody model that retains the original rail elastic properties. Simulations of the constructed rail model hauled using a freight train were done and the results were compared to on-track test measurements of the same configuration. The comparison generally showed good agreement, showing this modelling technique’s ability and accuracy to simulate the case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Lubrication Engineering (0254-0150) is the property of Editorial Office of LUBRICATION ENGINEERING and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The dynamic response of a 5 MW floating wind turbine is examined using the coupled finite element simulations, and the dynamic effects of the catenary is considered, while the coupling between flexible components are included. The restoring performance of the mooring-line is analysed based on the vector equations and numerical simulations. The stiffness hysteresis and the influence of the catenary dynamics on the restoring performance are studied. Then the structural responses undergoing wind and wave loads, are examined. Our results show that the mooring-line tension significantly rise due to catenary dynamics, and the snap tension gets around three times larger. The mooring-line stiffness presents a hysteresis character, owing to the fluid/structural damping, which becomes more obvious with the increase of motion frequency/amplitude. Moreover, the structural response gets smaller principally because of the hysteresis effect. The spar displacement and the tower root stress become respectively 18.4% and 32.7% smaller. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-field formulation of the nonlinear dynamics of an elastic body is presented in which positions/orientations and the resulting velocity field are treated as independent. Combining a nonclassical description of elastic velocity that includes the convection velocity due to elastic deformation with floating reference axes minimizing the relative kinetic energy due to elastic deformation provides a fully uncoupled expression of kinetic energy. A transformation inspired by the classical Legendre transformation concept is introduced to develop the motion equations in canonical form. Finite element discretization is achieved using the same shape function sets for elastic displacements and velocities. Specific attention is brought to the discretization of the gyroscopic forces induced by elastic deformation. A model reduction strategy to construct superelement models suitable for flexible multibody dynamics applications is proposed, which fulfills the essential condition of orthogonality between a rigid body and elastic motions. The problem of expressing kinematic connections at superelement boundaries is briefly addressed. Two academic examples have been developed to illustrate some of the concepts presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tethered system, which is a multibody system in which multiple rigid bodies are connected via a flexible tether, is currently used for space and deep-sea exploration. In order to perform accurate work with such tethered systems, the ability to comprehend tether dynamics behavior with large deformation/displacement and time-varying length is crucial. Numerical analyses are beneficial in that it is difficult to carry out experiments in such environment. In this paper, an efficient numerical approach is proposed for a flexible body motion with time-varying length using a dimensionless equation of motion. Generally Absolute Nodal Coordinate Formulation (ANCF), which is a nonlinear finite element method is effective for dynamic simulation of a flexible body motion. VFE-ANCF, which applies variable-domain finite element (VFE) as a method of expressing time-varying length to ANCF, was proposed to represent the motion of a flexible body with large deformation, displacement and time-varying length. However, conventional approach using VFE-ANCF has a problem that the accuracy changes depending on the length change. So in this paper, to avoid this problem, dimensionless variables are introduced using representative value that changes with time-varying length. In addition, the usefulness of this method is shown by comparing the numerical results using this method and the conventional method.

The general formulation of the dynamics of an elastic body undergoing arbitrary motion is revisited with emphasis on the orthogonality between rigid body motion and elastic deformation on the one hand, and on the appropriate definition of the relative velocities induced by elastic deformation on the other hand. A mixed displacement–velocity approach is adopted, thus allowing a local frame definition of velocities which results in simplification of the discretization and solution steps. The proposed formulation is applied to model reduction starting from a set of free‐free elastic modes and attachment modes. The Herting–Martinez component mode synthesis method is used to replace the modal intensities by a body‐frame nodal set of elastic degrees of freedom. A body‐to‐global frame transformation is then applied to the system equations in incremental form to avoid the use of Lagrange multipliers for expressing node‐to‐node connections. Examples are presented to assess the methodology proposed and its numerical implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates a multibody dynamic model for predicting changes in dynamic responses based on the hardpoints and torsion beam properties of a coupled torsion beam axle (CTBA). This model applies beam elements to torsion beams that experience large deformations, and it applies rigid bodies to other parts such as the spring mount, trailing arm, and knuckle. For beam element modeling, the Timoshenko beam theory is used. The performance of this model was evaluated through a roll simulation and virtual testing lab (VTL), and it was compared to a flexible body CTBA model and validated. The validation results showed that the two models' output errors were within 3% and 10% in the two test modes, respectively. This confirms that accuracy of the beam element based CTBA model is as high as that of the flexible body CTBA model. In addition, an effect analysis based on the design of the experiments (DOE) was performed on the hardpoints and torsion beam properties of the CTBA as an application case for the beam element based CTBA model. These application cases show that a beam element based CTBA model can be easily used to perform experiments for predicting system performance according to changes in hardpoints and torsion beam properties even when the shape of the CTBA is not determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Vibration Engineering is the property of Nanjing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The present work proposes a formulation to employ rigid bodies together with flexible bodies in the context of a nonlinear finite element solver, with contact interactions. Inertial contributions due to distribution of mass of a rigid body are fully developed, considering a general pole position associated with a single node, representing a rigid body element. Additionally, a mechanical constraint is proposed to connect a rigid region composed by several nodes, which is useful for linking rigid/flexible bodies in a finite element environment. Rodrigues rotation parameters are used to describe finite rotations, by an updated Lagrangian description. In addition, the contact formulation entitled master-surface to master-surface is employed in conjunction with the rigid body element and flexible bodies, aiming to consider their interaction in a rigid-flexible multibody environment. New surface parameterizations are presented to establish contact pairs, permitting pointwise interaction in a frictional scenario. Numerical examples are provided to show robustness and applicability of the methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Engineering for Thermal Energy & Power / Reneng Dongli Gongcheng is the property of Journal of Engineering for Thermal Energy & Power and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aiming at the problem of large deviation between the simulation results and the actual situation when regarding the pure rigid body as the smaller stiffness part with large force. Firstly,the working theory of auxiliary standing mechanism is sketched,then the rigid- flexible coupling dynamic simulation model is set up by utilizing the ADAMS and ANSYS. Based on the simulation model,the dynamic stress of upper and lower pipe in one movement cycle of the auxiliary standing mechanism is obtained,and the corresponding moment of the largest stress in the whole time course is further determined,then it is compared with the dynamic stress calculation results of the corresponding time in Workbench. The research results show that under the condition of the permitted error,the two results are basically consistent. The accuracy of theoretical calculation dynamic stress method based on the rigid- flexible coupling dynamics simulation model is verified,as the same time,compared with the finite element method,the analysis result of rigid- flexible coupling model can reflect the real dynamics behaviors of mechanism.

In view of the error influence of rigid structure,the flexible modeling technology is applied to drive system design of reducer. The finite element modeling and modal calculating about its parts are carried out by using ANSYS platform,and the flexible design of the reducer is realized through a way of replacing the parts’ MNF file,thus then a simulation model of the virtual prototype of flexible reducer is set up based on ADAMS /View platform. The driving rotational speed and load torque of the reducer are fitted with Step function,and then its flexible body dynamics simulation is carried out. The simulation results that more close to actual situation is calculated and analyzed,such as input and output torque,acceleration,dynamic load and 3D frequency spectrum,all of those provide some strong reference and basis for flexible design and precision analysis of mechanical drive system.

Electric vehicles are a major trend in research and development in the automobile industry. A vehicle’s handling ability is changed when the structure of the power system is altered, which is more obvious in medium-sized buses with higher load and a longer body whose body stiffness is relatively less stiff. In this context, flexible multi-body dynamic modeling, instead of rigid body modeling, is used to reflect the stiffness effects of the vehicle body and chassis systems. A control strategy is developed with an active variable stiffness anti-roll bar to improve vehicle handling characteristics by using the flexible body dynamic simulation with consideration of the step and single sinusoidal steering input tests. Through simulation, it was learned that the proposed control strategy could reduce the time of stabilization by 54.08% and suppress undesired handling behaviors in the step steering input test. Moreover, at high speed, the original unsteady condition became stabilized with little sacrifice in yaw velocity. In the single sinusoidal steering input test, the time of stabilization could be reduced by 8.43% and with 14.6% less yaw angle changes in the improved design. The overall handling was improved.

Current paper deals with hydroelastic impact of asymmetric and symmetric wedge sections with oblique speed into calm water. It is aimed to provide a better insight regarding fluid-structure interaction of the wedge sections of a high-speed craft into water in more realistic condition, in the presence of heel angle and oblique speeds. The defined problem is numerically investigated by coupled Finite Volume Method and Finite Element Method under two-way approach consideration. Accuracy of the proposed model is assessed in different steps. The results of current method are compared against previous experimental, numerical and theoretical methods and good agreement is displayed in these comparisons. Subsequently, the method is used in order to examine the fluid and structure behavior during the elastic impact of the wedge into water. Accordingly, four different physical situations are simulated. In the first part, symmetric impact with no oblique speed is simulated. The results of this part show fluctuations in vertical force and pressure of the midpoint during the impact time. Also, the relation of deadrise with deflection and pressure is observed in this part. In the second part, heel angle is also taken into consideration. It is concluded that the pressure and deflections at the right side of the wedge reduce, but these parameters increase at the left side. Moreover, it is observed that, the pressure at the midpoint of the left side of the wedge with deadrise angle of 10°, becomes negative, when the wall of the flexible wedge reaches its largest deflection. It is also observed that, the pressure at left side of the wedge with deadrise angle of 20°, reaches zero. Such behavior does not occur for the wedges of 30° and 45° deadrise angles. In the third part of simulations, oblique water entry of a flexible wedge of 20° deadrise angle is simulated, and no heel angle is considered. Harmonic behavior is observed for the vertical force, horizontal force, pressure of the midpoint and its deflection. First peaks of all of these variables are larger than the second peak. The obtained results lead us to conclude that an increase in oblique speed yields larger deflection and pressure at the right side. Meanwhile, no significant effect is observed for the left side of the wedge. Also, larger oblique speed is found to yield larger forces and angular moment. Final part of simulations involves the oblique water entry of a flexible wedge of 5° heel angle. Comparison of the results in the final part with that of third part, show that heel angle affects the pressure and deflection at both sides of the wedge. It is also observed that pressure and deflections of the left side increase, while those of right side increase. It is also seen that, similar as in the case of no heel angle, an increase in oblique speed leads to an increase of pressure and deflection at the starboard. It also leads to an increase in frequency of the vibration at right side. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]