The equations of motion of a flexible rotating shaft have been typically derived by introducing gyroscopic moments, in an inconsistent manner, as generalized work terms in a Lagrangian formulation or as external moments in a Newtonian approach. This paper presents the consistent derivation of a set of governing differential equations describing the flexural vibration in two orthogonal planes and the torsional vibration of a straight rotating shaft with dissimilar lateral principal moments of inertia and subject to a constant compressive axial load. The coupling between flexural and torsional vibration due to mass eccentricity is not considered. In addition, a new approach for calculating correctly the effect of an axial load for a Timoshenko beam is presented based on the change in length of the centroidal line. It is found that the use of either a floating frame approach with the small strain assumption or a finite strain beam theory is necessary to obtain a consistent derivation of the terms corresponding to gyroscopic moments in the equations of motion. However, the virtual work of an axial load through the geometric shortening appears consistently in the formulation only when using a finite strain beam theory.

A nonlinear model is developed which describes the rotational response of automotive serpentine belt drive systems. Serpentine drives utilize a single (long) belt to drive all engine accessories from the crankshaft. An equilibrium analysis leads to a closed-form procedure for determining steady-state tensions in each, belt span. The equations of motion are linearized about the equilibrium state and rotational mode vibration characteristics are determined from the eigenvalue problem governing free response. Numerical solutions of the nonlinear equations of motion indicate that, under certain engine operating conditions, the dynamic tension fluctuations may be sufficient to cause the belt to slip on particular accessory pulleys. Experimental measurements of dynamic response are in good agreement with theoretical results and confirm theoretical predictions of system vibration, tension fluctuations, and slip.

An investigation of the localization phenomenon in band/wheel systems is presented. The effects of tension disorder, interspan coupling, and translation speed on the confinement of the natural modes of free vibration are investigated both theoretically and experimentally. Two models of the band/wheel system dynamics are discussed; a simple model proposed by the authors [1] and a more complete model originally proposed by Wang and Mote [9]. The results obtained using the simple interspan coupling model reveal phenomena (i.e., eigenvalue crossings and veerings and associated mode localization) that are qualitatively similar to those featured by the more complex model of interspan coupling, thereby confirming the usefulness of the simple coupling model. The analytical predictions of the two models are validated by an experiment. A very good agreement between the experimental results and the theoretical ones for the simple model is observed. While both the experimental observations and the theoretical predictions show that a beating phenomenon takes place for ordered stationary and axially moving beams, beating is destroyed (indicating the occurrence of localization) when any small tension disorder is introduced especially for small interspan coupling ( i.e. , when localization is strongest).

An investigation of the vibration localization phenomenon in dual-span, axially moving beams is presented. The effects of a tension difference among the spans, also referred to as disorder, on the natural modes of free vibration are studied in terms of interspan coupling and transport speed. The equations governing the transverse vibration of the two-span, axially moving beam are derived through Hamilton’s principle and solution methods are developed. Results demonstrate that normal mode localization indeed occurs for both stationary and translating disordered two-span beams, especially for small interspan coupling. The occurrence of localization is characterized by a peak deflection much greater in one span than in the other. In the stationary disordered case, localization becomes more pronounced as interspan coupling decreases, i.e. , as the span axial tension increases. In the axially moving disordered case, the transport speed has a significant influence on localization, and generally speaking localization becomes stronger with increasing speed. For a moving beam with identical spans, the two loci of each pair of natural frequencies may exhibit one or more crossing(s) (depending on the value of tension) when plotted against the axial transport speed. These crossings become veerings when the beam is disordered, and localization is strongest at those speeds where the eigenvalue veerings occur.

This theoretical and experimental study identifies a key nonlinear mechanism that promotes strongly coupled dynamics of serpentine belt drive systems. Attention is focused on a prototype three-pulley system that contains the essential features of automotive serpentine drives having automatic (spring-loaded) tensioners. A theoretical model is presented that describes pulley and tensioner arm rotations, and longitudinal and transverse belt response. A recent investigation demonstrates that infinitesimal belt stretching creates a linear mechanism that couples transverse belt response to tensioner arm rotation. Here, it is further demonstrated that finite belt stretching creates a nonlinear mechanism that may lead to strongly coupled response in the presence of an internal resonance. Theoretical and experimental results confirm the existence of this nonlinear coupling mechanism. In particular, it is shown that very large transverse belt vibrations can result from small resonant torque pulses applied to the crankshaft or accessory pulleys.