This book will be particularly useful to those interested in multibody simulation (MBS) and the formulation for the dynamics of spatial multibody systems. The main types of coordinates that can be used in the formulation of the equations of motion of constrained multibody systems are described. The multibody system, made of interconnected bodies that undergo large displacements and rotations, is fully defined. Readers will discover how Cartesian coordinates and Euler parameters are utilized and are the supporting structure for all methodologies and dynamic analysis, developed within the multibody systems methodologies. The work also covers the constraint equations associated with the basic kinematic joints, as well as those related to the constraints between two vectors. The formulation of multibody systems adopted here uses the generalized coordinates and the Newton-Euler approach to derive the equations of motion. This formulation results in the establishment of a mixed set of differential and algebraic equations, which are solved in order to predict the dynamic behavior of multibody systems. This approach is very straightforward in terms of assembling the equations of motion and providing all joint reaction forces. The demonstrative examples and discussions of applications are particularly valuable aspects of this book, which builds the reader's understanding of fundamental concepts.

This book will be particularly useful to those interested in multibody simulation (MBS) and the formulation for the dynamics of spatial multibody systems. The main types of coordinates that can be used in the formulation of the equations of motion of constrained multibody systems are described. The multibody system, made of interconnected bodies that undergo large displacements and rotations, is fully defined. Readers will discover how Cartesian coordinates and Euler parameters are utilized and are the supporting structure for all methodologies and dynamic analysis, developed within the multibody systems methodologies. The work also covers the constraint equations associated with the basic kinematic joints, as well as those related to the constraints between two vectors. The formulation of multibody systems adopted here uses the generalized coordinates and the Newton-Euler approach to derive the equations of motion. This formulation results in the establishment of a mixed set of differential and algebraic equations, which are solved in order to predict the dynamic behavior of multibody systems. This approach is very straightforward in terms of assembling the equations of motion and providing all joint reaction forces. The demonstrative examples and discussions of applications are particularly valuable aspects of this book, which builds the reader’s understanding of fundamental concepts.

This book analyzes several compliant contact force models within the context of multibody dynamics, while also revisiting the main issues associated with fundamental contact mechanics. In particular, it presents various contact force models, from linear to nonlinear, from purely elastic to dissipative, and describes their parameters. Addressing the different numerical methods and algorithms for contact problems in multibody systems, the book describes the gross motion of multibody systems by using a two-dimensional formulation based on the absolute coordinates and employs different contact models to represent contact-impact events. Results for selected planar multibody mechanical systems are presented and utilized to discuss the main assumptions and procedures adopted throughout this work. The material provided here indicates that the prediction of the dynamic behavior of mechanical systems involving contact-impact strongly depends on the choice of contact force model. In short, the book provides a comprehensive resource for the multibody dynamics community and beyond on modeling contact forces and the dynamics of mechanical systems undergoing contact-impact events.

This book gathers the latest advances, innovations, and applications in the field of multibody and mechatronic systems. Topics addressed include the analysis and synthesis of mechanisms; modelling and simulation of multibody systems; railway and vehicle dynamics; mechatronic systems for energy harvesting; robot design and optimization; and mechatronic design. It gathers the second volume of the proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Multibody Systems and Mechatronics (MuSMe), virtually held in Cordoba, Argentina, on October 12-15, 2021, within the framework of the FEIbIM Commission for Robotics and Mechanisms and IFToMM Technical Committees for Multibody Dynamics and for Robotics and Mechatronics.

Light rail trains (LRT) are an important part of public transport but due to perceived high life-cycle costs are not always considered suitable. Life cycle cost reduction might be achieved through a knowledge-based maintenance management rather than just on experience. This work develops limits of maintenance and renewal of LRT systems based on vehicle reactions to the current track quality through measured data, multibody simulations and track geometry indices. An approach based on knowledge would lead to a track condition which allows a safe, comfortable, and under an appropriate maintenance strategy, economically profitable operation.

This book discusses the parametric modeling, performance evaluation, design optimization and comparative study of the high-speed, parallel pick-and-place robots. It collects the modeling methodology, evaluation criteria and design guidelines for parallel PnP robots to provide a systematic analysis method for robotic developers. Furthermore, it gathers the research results previously scattered in many prestigious international journals and conference proceedings and methodically edits them and presents them in a unified form. The book is of interest to researchers, R&D engineers and graduate students in industrial parallel robotics who wish to learn the core principles, methods, algorithms, and applications.

This book presents the selected proceedings of the (third) fourth Vehicle and Automotive Engineering conference, reflecting the outcomes of theoretical and practical studies and outlining future development trends in a broad field of automotive research. The conference’s main themes included design, manufacturing, economic and educational topics.

This book highlights recent findings in industrial, manufacturing and mechanical engineering, and provides an overview of the state of the art in these fields, mainly in Russia and Eastern Europe. A broad range of topics and issues in modern engineering are discussed, including the dynamics of machines and working processes, friction, wear and lubrication in machines, surface transport and technological machines, manufacturing engineering of industrial facilities, materials engineering, metallurgy, control systems and their industrial applications, industrial mechatronics, automation and robotics. The book gathers selected papers presented at the 6th International Conference on Industrial Engineering (ICIE), held in Sochi, Russia in May 2020. The authors are experts in various fields of engineering, and all papers have been carefully reviewed. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to a wide readership, including mechanical and production engineers, lecturers in engineering disciplines, and engineering graduates.

This book provides an accessible introduction to the variational formulation of Lagrangian and Hamiltonian mechanics, with a novel emphasis on global descriptions of the dynamics, which is a significant conceptual departure from more traditional approaches based on the use of local coordinates on the configuration manifold. In particular, we introduce a general methodology for obtaining globally valid equations of motion on configuration manifolds that are Lie groups, homogeneous spaces, and embedded manifolds, thereby avoiding the difficulties associated with coordinate singularities. The material is presented in an approachable fashion by considering concrete configuration manifolds of increasing complexity, which then motivates and naturally leads to the more general formulation that follows. Understanding of the material is enhanced by numerous in-depth examples throughout the book, culminating in non-trivial applications involving multi-body systems. This book is written for a general audience of mathematicians, engineers, and physicists with a basic knowledge of mechanics. Some basic background in differential geometry is helpful, but not essential, as the relevant concepts are introduced in the book, thereby making the material accessible to a broad audience, and suitable for either self-study or as the basis for a graduate course in applied mathematics, engineering, or physics.