Design and anlysis of smart composite truss structures.

Kurzfassung

This paper discusses the integration of smart materials, especially optical fibers, into lightweight struts consisting of a carbon fiber reinforced plastic side and a foam core. Fiber/optic interferometric strain gauges are investigated, and their characteristics are presented. The control of the smart truss structures under consideration is realized by adaptive digital real-time controllers which are implemented on high-speed signal processors. Finally, a finite element formulation for truss structures with integrated piezo-electric actuators is given, and the optimal positions of actuators that are used for active vibration control are calculated with respect to minimum control effort and spillover energy.