Department of Mechanical Engineering

ME 7360 Theory of Vibration

Assignment 2
Due on: September 23, 2015

1. A vibrating system consisting of a mass of 2 kg and a spring of stiffness 20 N/cm

is viscously damped such that the ratio of any two consecutive amplitudes is 1.00
and 0.98. Determine

(a) the natural frequency of the damped system,

(b) logarithmic decrement,
(c) damping factor, and
(d) the damping coefficient.

2. A gun barrel weighing 544 kg has a recoil spring of stiffness 29,864 N/m. If the
barrel recoils 1.22 m on firing, determine

(a) the initial recoil velocity of the barrel,

(b) the critical damping coefficient of a dashpot that is engaged at the end of
the recoil stroke,
(c) the time required for the barrel to return to a position 51 mm from its initial
position.

3. A piston of mass 4.53 kg is travelling in a tube with a velocity of 15.24 m/s and
engages a spring and damper, as shown in Figure 1(a). Determine the maximum
displacement of the piston after engaging the spring-damper. How many seconds
does it take to reach the maximum displacement?

(a) Problem 3 (b) Problem 7

Figure 1:

1
4. A machine part of mass 2 kg vibrates in a viscous medium. Determine the damp-
ing coefficient when a harmonic exciting force of 25 N results in a resonant am-
plitude of 2 cm with a time period of 0.20 s.

5. An industrial machine of mass 500 kg is supported on springs with a static deflec-

tion of 0.5 cm. If the machine has a rotating unbalance of 0.25 kgm, determine

(a) the force transmitted to the floor at 1200 rpm and

(b) the dynamic amplitude at this speed; assume damping to be negligible.

6. An aircraft radio weighing 98.1 N is to be isolated from engine vibrations ranging

in frequencies from 1500 to 2400 cpm. What static deflection must the isolators
have for 85% isolation?

7. The point of suspension of a simple pendulum is given by a harmonic motion x0 =

X0 sin !t along a horizontal line, as shown in Figure 1(b). Write the differential
p
equation of motion for a small amplitude of oscillation using the coordinates
shown. Determine the solution for xx0 , and show that when ! = 2!n , the node
is found at the midpoint of l. Show that in
 general
2 q h from the mass
the distance
to the node is given by the relation h = l !n , where !n = gl .
!