[pt] A redução de deslocamentos e acelerações em edifícios é um aspecto de vital importância no projeto de estruturas sob a ação de sismos. Assim, o controle de vibrações de estruturas em regiões sujeitas a eventos sísmicos tem se tornado um importante tema de pesquisa em engenharia. Dentre os mecanismos propostos para a redução de vibrações em estruturas, encontram-se os amortecedores magnetoreológicos (MR). Amortecedores magnetoreológicos são dispositivos passivos ou semiativos que controlam as vibrações com um consumo mínimo de energia. Estes mecanismos são caracterizados por um comportamento histerético não linear que leva em geral a uma grande dissipação de energia. Neste trabalho estuda-se o efeito de um amortecedor MR e de seus parâmetros característicos na redução das vibrações de edifícios e torres esbeltas. Para isto, utiliza-se o modelo de Bouc-Wen. O edifício é descrito como um sistema discreto massa-mola-amortecedor do tipo shear-building e a torre como um pêndulo múltiplo, onde se leva em conta a possibilidade de grandes rotações e deslocamentos. Considera-se o amortecedor localizado na estrutura (primeiro andar) e como um sistema de isolamento de base, com o propósito de verificar a influência da localização do amortecedor na redução das respostas dinâmicas. Quando o dispositivo é usado como isolamento de base, ambos os modelos mostraram uma grande diminuição da resposta dinâmica, em comparação aos resultados com o dispositivo no primeiro andar. Estuda-se também a influência da relação entre as frequências da estrutura e o conteúdo de frequências da excitação na eficiência do amortecedor MR. Os resultados mostram que esta relação tem uma grande influência no grau de redução das vibrações da estrutura controlada. Em todos os casos analisados, observa-se que o amortecedor MR leva a uma redução das vibrações, em particular dos deslocamentos da estrutura. / [en] The reduction of displacements and accelerations in buildings is a vital aspect in the design of structures under an earthquake excitation. Thus, the vibration control of structures in areas subject to seismic events has become an important research topic in engineering. Among the proposed mechanisms to reduce vibrations in structures, are the magneto rheological dampers (MR). Magneto rheological dampers are passive or semi-active devices for vibration control characterized by small energy consumption. These mechanisms are characterized by a nonlinear hysteretic behavior that usually leads to large energy dissipation. In this paper the effect of an MR damper and its characteristic parameters in reducing the vibrations of buildings and slender towers is studied. For this, the Bouc-Wen model is adopted. The building is described as a discrete mass-spring-damper-type shear-building and the tower as a multiple pendulum, which takes into account large displacements and rotations. It is considered that the damper is located in the structure (first floor) or as a base isolation system, in order to verify the influence of the location of the damper in the reduction of dynamic responses. When the device is used as a base isolation, both models show a large decrease of the dynamic response as compared to the results with the device on the first floor. The influence of the relationship between the frequencies of the structure and frequency content of the excitation on the efficiency of MR damper is also investigated. The results show that this relation has a great influence on the degree of reduction of vibrations of the controlled structure. In all cases here analyzed, it is observed that the MR damper leads to a reduction of the vibration response, in particular the displacement of the structure.

As rail transportation is significantly more virtuous than airplanes or cars in terms of greenhousegases emissions, its development is being encouraged in several European countries, includingSweden. In addition, the development of railway lines on which trains can travel at higher speeds ismade in Sweden with the integration of existing infrastructure. On railway bridges, an increased trainspeed potentially leads to an increase in vibrations during passage, for which the structure may not bedesigned. It is therefore essential to know the dynamic properties of the structures used.Several studies highlight the influence of friction phenomena in sliding bearings on the dynamicproperties of bridges equipped with them. This Master Thesis is based on previous works that led tothe development of a finite element modelling the friction mechanisms that occur in these bearings.The friction occurring between a PTFE sliding plate and a steel surface is thus modelled using the Bouc-Wen model, a model for hysteresis phenomena. The finite element was developed as a Fortransubroutine, which can be integrated into the finite element calculation software Abaqus as a "userdefinedelement". It allows friction to be modelled along the longitudinal direction of the bridge onlyand can therefore only be used in two-dimensional models. The user-defined element is also based ona model that takes into account the influence of contact pressure and sliding velocity on the steel-PTFEcoefficient of friction. As several studies indicate, contact temperature can also have a significantinfluence on the value of the coefficient of friction but is not taken into account in the current model.In this project, the previously developed finite element was therefore generalized to account forfriction in both directions of the sliding plate by the means of a two-dimensional generalization of theBouc-Wen model. Based on experimental data available in scientific literature, the model forcalculating the coefficient of friction was also extended to take into account the influence of thecontact temperature. In addition, a model to update the contact temperature based on the theory ofsurface heating of semi-infinite bodies has been incorporated. Finally, this thesis presents theintegration of this updated finite element on three-dimensional models of the Banafjäl Bridge, locatedin northern Sweden. Simulations to estimate the fundamental frequencies and resonance modes ofthe structure as well as the temperature increase that can occur in a bearing during the passage of atrain were carried out on this model.

n recent years, there has been a surge in interest and research into the utilisation of soft actuators within the field of robotics, driven by the novel capabilities of their inherently compliant material. One such actuator is the Pneumatic Artificial Muscle (PAM) which offers a high power-to-mass ratio, compliance, safety, and biological mimicry when compared to their traditional counterparts. However, because of their flexible and complex physical structure and the compressibility of air inside the PAM, they exhibit nonlinear dynamic behaviour, largely due to the influence of the hysteresis phenomenon. In order to implement strategies to counteract this effect, it first needs to be modelled. As such, this thesis investigates two approaches, namely the Maxwell-Slip (MS) and generalised Bouc-Wen (BW) models. Firstly, the test muscle's initial braid angle, maximum displacement, and maximum force are determined to establish the static force using a modified model. Data is then collected on the PAM's force-displacement hysteresis for 2-6 bar of pressure. Using the results from these experiments, the MS and BW model parameters are identified through optimisation. With the static and hysteresis force components characterised, two complete dynamic models are created. The findings show that, when compared to the collected force-displacement data, the BW model has greater accuracy for all pressures except at 4 bar, although both approaches demonstrate results within a satisfactory margin. Lastly, a model validation is conducted to compare the models using a new dataset, separate from the one on which they were trained. Data for this test is recorded at a pressure of 4 bar with a more complex reference that covers four different regions of the muscle's displacement range. Thereafter, both dynamic models are applied to assess their performance. It is evident from the results that the BW model produces a better outcome than the MS, achieving a normalised error of 5.3746% as compared to the latter's 12.835%. The higher accuracy of the generalised BoucWen method is likely due to it having a more complex structure, specialised parameters, and the ability to model asymmetric hysteresis. The Maxwell-Slip model may however still be preferable in some applications due to its relative simplicity and faster optimisation. / Under de senaste åren har intresset och forskningen ökat kring användningen av mjuka ställdon inom robotik, drivet av den innovativa potentialen som erbjuds av egenskaperna hos deras naturligt flexibla material. Ett sådant ställdon är den Pneumatiska Artificiella Muskeln (PAM) som erbjuder hög kraft i förhållande till vikten, elasticitet, säkerhet och biologisk imitation jämfört med dess traditionella motsvarigheter. Trots dessa fördelar så uppvisar PAM:s ett icke-önskvärt olinjärt dynamiskt beteende, till stor del på grund av deras flexibla och komplexa fysiska struktur samt kompressibiliteten av luft inuti PAM:en. Dessa olinjäriteter orsakar hysteresfenomenet i muskeln. För att implementera strategier för att kunna motverka denna effekt så måste den först modelleras. Till följd därav så undersöker denna avhandling två tillvägagångssätt, nämligen Maxwell-Slip (MS) och den generaliserade Bouc-Wen (BW) modellen. Inledningsvis identifieras testmuskelns initiala flätvinkel, maximala förskjutning och maximala kraft för att fastställa den statiska kraften med hjälp av en modifierad modell. Data samlas sedan in på PAM:ens kraft-förskjutningshysteres för 2-6 bar av tryck. Med hjälp av resultaten från dessa experiment identifieras MS- och BW-modellparametrarna genom optimering. Med de statiska och hystereskraftskomponenterna karakteriserade kan två kompletta dynamiska modeller framkallas. Resultaten visar att jämfört med den insamlade kraft-förskjutningsdatan har BW-modellen en större noggrannhet för alla tryck förutom vid 4 bar, men båda metoderna uppvisar resultat som är inom en godtagbar marginal. Slutligen genomförs en modellvalidering för att jämföra modellerna med hjälp av ett nytt dataset, annorlunda från den som de tränades på. Datan för detta test mäts vid ett tryck på 4 bar med en mer komplex referens som täcker fyra olika regioner av muskelns förskjutningsområde. Därefter tillämpas båda dynamiska modellerna för att bedöma deras prestanda. Det är uppenbart från resultaten att BW-modellen ger ett bättre resultat än MS-modellen, och uppnår ett normaliserat fel på 5,3746% jämfört med den sistnämndas 12,835%. Den högre noggrannheten hos den generaliserade Bouc-Wen-metoden beror sannolikt på att den har en mer komplex struktur, specialiserade parametrar och förmågan att modellera asymmetrisk hysteres. Maxwell-Slipmodellen kan däremot ändå vara att föredra i vissa sammanhang på grund av dess relativa simplicitet och snabbare optimering

<p>Real-time hybrid simulation (RTHS) has demonstrated certain advantages over conventional large-scale testing. In an RTHS, the system that is under study is partitioned into a numerical and a physical substructure, where the numerical part is comprised of those elements that are easier to model mathematically, while the physical part consists of those that present a complex behavior difficult to capture in a numerical model. The most complex part of this study is the isolation system, a technology used to protect structures against earthquakes by modifying how they respond to ground motions. Unbonded Fiber Reinforced Elastomeric Isolators (UFREIs) are devices that can accomplish this task and have gained attention in recent years because of their modest but valuable features that make them suitable for implementation in low-rise buildings and in developing countries because of their low cost. Our end goal for this work is to enable the testing of scaled versions of these elastomeric isolators to understand their behavior under shear tests and realistic loading. </p> <p>A testing instrument was designed and constructed to apply a uniaxial compressive force up to 22kN and a shear force of 8kN simultaneously to the specimens. A testing program was conducted where four primary sources of signal distortion were identified as caused by the servo-hydraulic system. From these results, a mechanics-based model was developed to understand better the dynamics that the sliding table can introduce to the measured signals accounting for inertial and dissipative forces. Two Bouc-Wen models were implemented to simulate the behavior of the UFREIs. The first only accounts for the hysteretic behavior of the isolator, and the second accounts for the additional nonlinearities found in the isolator’s behavior. These models were assembled in a virtual RTHS which is available to users interested in learning the applications of RTHS of a base-isolated structure with a nonlinear component.</p> <p>An RTHS experiment was conducted in the IISL where the control system comprised a delay compensator and a proportional-integral controller, which exhibited a good tracking performance with minimal delay and low RMSE. However, it can increase the distortion of the oil-column resonance in the measured signals. The simulation captures the behavior of the isolated structure for small displacements. However, it underestimates the displacement of the full-scale specimen for large displacements. The RTHS showed a better approximation of the displacement of the full-scale structure than the theoretical behavior approximated by the Bouc-Wen models.</p>