An eigenvector-based approach for improved parameter variation for multibody mechanical systems

ABSTRACT

Optimal design of complex multibody mechanical systems involving numerous design parameters and constraints is a challenging problem. System parameters are typically determined through a recursive process which leads to a set of nominal values. While these nominal values satisfy design constraints they generally result in suboptimal performance. In practice, nominal design values can undergo a final adjustment step to improve performance while ensuring that design constraints are not violated. In this article, we present a framework for design parameter variation to optimize the performance of a multibody system. As an example, we apply the proposed method to an exploration rover and show that the proposed approach provides superior results compared to the standard sensitivity derivative approach.

KEYWORDS:

• Multibody dynamics
• parametric analysis
• sensitivity derivative

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to acknowledge the assistance of Dr. Francisco González and Dr. Bahareh Ghotbi with the rover modeling and simulation in Section 3. Their help is gratefully acknowledged.

Notes

MacDonald-Dettwiler and Associates