Power Flow in a Two-Stage Nonlinear Vibration Isolation System with High-Static-Low-Dynamic Stiffness

The manuscript concerns the power flow characterization in a two-stage nonlinear vibration isolator comprising three springs, which are configured so that each stage of the system has a high-static-low-dynamic stiffness. To demonstrate the distinction of evaluation for vibration isolation using power flow, force transmissibility is used for comparison. The dynamic behavior of the isolator subject to harmonic excitation, however, is of interest here. The harmonic balance method (HBM) could be used to analyze the frequency response curve (FRC) of the strong nonlinear vibration system. A suggested stability analysis to distinguish the stable and the unstable HBM solutions is described. Increasing both upper and lower nonlinear stiffness could bend the first resonant peak to the left. The isolation range in the power and the force transmissibility plot could be extended to the lower frequencies when the nonlinear stiffness is increased, but the rate of roll-off for the power transmissibility is twice the rate for the force transmissibility at each horizontal stiffness setting. An explanation for this phenomenon is given in the paper.