Multibody Simulation of Actively Controlled Carbody Flexibility

Abstract

This paper presents a methodology to simulate smart structures with piezoceramic patches by means of multibody dynamics. Therefore the theoretical background is outlined adapting a modal multifield approach. Then the data preprocessing on base of a finite element modal analysis of the elastic structure is described. Finally, two application examples are exposed which deal with vehicle dynamics simulation scenarios. The presented process chain provides the framework for the more general objective, namely the development of a multibody dynamics environment, which enables the design, the optimisation, and verification of all vibration control elements.