PRACTICAL MODEL IDENTIFICATION

FROM EXPERIMENTAL DATA

Introduction
In this experiment, we are using cantilever beam along with two strain gauge Wheatstone bridge
circuit. A cantilever beam is a rigid structure anchored at one end while other end is set free. The
deflection of cantilever beam depends on following parameters,

 Force applied on beam

 Length of beam
 Modulus of elasticity
 Moment of inertia
Modulus of elasticity is the most commonly used term in this experiment and can be defines as the
mechanical property of material which is the ratio of tensile stress and strain. Greater the value
of elastic modulus stiffer will be the material.
Moment of inertia can be defined as a measure of capacity of the cross section to resist
bending/deflection.
Second component used in this experiment is Wheatstone bridge circuit which is used for
measuring the strain in beam after we apply some force on it and it starts moving up and down.
In this experiment we had measured values experimentally to compare them with theoretical values in
order to check the accuracy of equations used for prediction of deflection and other parameters.
10) Automotive suspension system can be taken as good example of spring-mass system. Automotive
suspension system is dynamic system that allows vehicle to drive straightly and smoothly on the road
without any jerkiness or discomfort. There are several components of a suspension system which
make this possible, such as the shock absorbers, springs, wheels, struts, and tires. If you didn’t
have a suspension system in your vehicle, then the driving experience would be miserable rather
than comfortable. When a car is on bumpy road and hit something bumpy, the energy moves
from tires to the body of vehicle. Suspension system absorbs major part of this energy and
protects the body of vehicle.
The suspension system consists of anti-sway bars, springs, and dampeners. Sway bars are
what keeps both sides of the vehicle stabilize while it is in motion. Springs are there to support
weight of vehicle and passengers. Springs also keep the body high enough so they don’t hit
ground on bumpy road. A lot of types of springs are used in vehicles based on sizes and classes
but all springs serve same purpose. The motion of spring is managed by dampers also known as
shocks or struts. Shocks absorbs most of the energy moving from tires to the body and reduces
the effect of jumps.
Spring-mass dynamic system form of car suspension system can be derived as,

Where,
Ms=Spring Mass
Mus=Unspring Mass
Ks=Suspension stiffness
Cs=Suspension damping co−efficient
Kt =Tire stiffness
Ys=Springmass displacement
Yus=Unspringmass Displacement
S=Road input

d2 Y s d Y s d Y us
Ms
dt 2
+C s (
dt
−
dt )
+ K s ( Y s −Y us )=0

d 2 Y us d Y us d Y s
M us
dt 2
+C s (dt
−
dt )
+ K s ( Y us −Y s )=0

In matrices form, this system can be represented as,

d 2 Ys dYs

[ Ms 0 dt

dt2
2

] [ ] [ ][ ] [
+ Cs −Cs dt + Ks −Ks Ys = 0
0 Mus d2 Yus −Cs Cs dYus −Ks Ks+ Kt Yus (Kt )(S )

M ÿ+ c ẏ +ky =f
dt
][ ] [ ]
11) Ifwe attach an object of unknown mass M1 on the tip of beam, there will be initial force
acting on beam equal to weight W M 1 of object and it may cause a little deflection in beam
depending on the weight. Thus, total net force acting on beam can be given as,
F net=W M 1 + F

Where,
W M 1 is weight of mass on tip of beam.
Fis the force applied by observer.
The displacement ∆ covered by beam after putting some mass on it can be measured
experimentally and in mathematical form, it can be written as

W M 1∗l 3
∆= …(a)
3∗E∗I
Where,
L=span length of bending member
E=Elasticity modulus
I=moment of inertia
Total displacement covered by beam can be given as,

F net∗l3
∆ net = …(b)
3∗E∗I

Now assuming F=0, we have only W M 1 force being applied on beam. So,
F net=0+W M 1

W M 1=Mg ...(c)
Where,
M 1 is the mass on tip of beam and g is gravitational acceleration and its value is 9.8m/s2.

Replacing F net withW M 1in equation (b) will give us the value of W M 1(assuming other factors are
known).
Inserting this value in equation (c) will give us the value of Mass of object.
12) Suggestion to improve this practical,
dy
 Using a cantilever beam with initial slope =0 (without any mass) will be good to
dx
improve this practical.
Significance of Experimental modelling,
 Major advantage of experimental modeling is it can be used for an unknown process.
 Experimental modelling is widely used in control systems and can be considered as base
of control systems.

Reference
1. Łukasz Konieczny and Rafał Burdzik.(2017)’Modern suspension systems for automotive vehicles
and their test methods’,Silesian University of Technology, Faculty of Transport, Gliwice,
Poland,pp. 234-237