Performance Analysis of Frictional Inerter-Based Vibration Isolator

PurposeThis study aims to gain an in-depth understanding of the effect of the inherent dry friction of inerter devices on the performance of non-linear frictional inerter-based vibration isolation system (NFI-VIS).MethodsThe power flow analysis method is used to investigate quantitatively the internal vibration transmission and energy dissipation. The harmonic balance (HB) method with alternating frequency-time (AFT) scheme is used to obtain the steady-state dynamic responses, with verification by numerical integration results.ResultsThe results show that the use of the non-linear inerter in the system can reduce the force and vibration power flow transmission over a wide frequency band. The inherent friction of the inerter can benefit vibration isolation when the excitation amplitude is large enough to overcome the inerter friction.ConclusionThis research reveals complex non-linear dynamic phenomena of the system emerging from the frictional inerter and shows that the inherent dry friction of the inerter should be considered in future isolator design.