Three main disciplines in the area of multibody systems are covered: kinematics, dynamics, and control, as pertaining to systems that can be modelled as coupling or rigid bodies. The treatment is intended to give a state of the art of the topics discussed.

This enhanced fourth edition of Dynamics of Multibody Systems includes an additional chapter that provides explanations of some of the fundamental issues addressed in the book, as well as new detailed derivations of some important problems. Many common mechanisms such as automobiles, space structures, robots and micromachines have mechanical and structural systems that consist of interconnected rigid and deformable components. The dynamics of these large-scale multibody systems are highly nonlinear, presenting complex problems that in most cases can only be solved with computer-based techniques. The book begins with a review of the basic ideas of kinematics and the dynamics of rigid and deformable bodies before moving on to more advanced topics and computer implementation. The book's wealth of examples and practical applications will be useful to graduate students, researchers and practising engineers working on a wide variety of flexible multibody systems.

This book presents suitable methodologies for the dynamic analysis of multibody mechanical systems with joints. It contains studies and case studies of real and imperfect joints. The book is intended for researchers, engineers, and graduate students in applied and computational mechanics.

Mechanical engineering, an engineering discipline born of the needs of the industrial revolution, is once again asked to do its substantial share in the call for industrial renewal. The general call is urgent as we face profound issues of productivity and competitiveness that require engineering solu tions, among others. The Mechanical Engineering Series features graduate texts and research monographs intended to address the need for informa tion in contemporary areas of mechanical engineering. The series is conceived as a comprehensive one that will cover a broad range of concentrations important to mechanical engineering graduate edu cation and research. We are fortunate to have a distinguished roster of consulting editors, each an expert in one of the areas of concentration. The names of the consulting editors are listed on the front page of the volume. The areas of concentration are applied mechanics, biomechanics, computa tional mechanics, dynamic systems and control, energetics, mechanics of material, processing, thermal science, and tribology. Professor Leckie, the consulting editor for applied mechanics, and I are pleased to present this volume of the series: Kinematic and Dynamic Simulation of Multibody Systems: The Real-Time Challenge by Professors Garcia de Jal6n and Bayo. The selection of this volume underscores again the interest of the Mechanical Engineering Series to provide our readers with topical monographs as well as graduate texts. Austin Texas Frederick F. Ling v The first author dedicates this book to the memory of Prof F. Tegerizo (t 1988), who introduced him to kinematics.

Thank heavens for Jens Wittenburg, of the University of Karlsruhe in Germany. Anyone who’s been laboring for years over equation after equation will want to give him a great big hug. It is common practice to develop equations for each system separately and to consider the labor necessary for deriving all of these as inevitable. Not so, says the author. Here, he takes it upon himself to describe in detail a formalism which substantially simplifies these tasks.

Dynamics of Multibody Systems, 3rd Edition, first published in 2005, introduces multibody dynamics, with an emphasis on flexible body dynamics. Many common mechanisms such as automobiles, space structures, robots and micromachines have mechanical and structural systems that consist of interconnected rigid and deformable components. The dynamics of these large-scale, multibody systems are highly nonlinear, presenting complex problems that in most cases can only be solved with computer-based techniques. The book begins with a review of the basic ideas of kinematics and the dynamics of rigid and deformable bodies before moving on to more advanced topics and computer implementation. This revised third edition now includes important developments relating to the problem of large deformations and numerical algorithms as applied to flexible multibody systems. The book's wealth of examples and practical applications will be useful to graduate students, researchers, and practising engineers working on a wide variety of flexible multibody systems.

Comprehensive, up-to-date and firmly rooted in practical experience, a key publication for all automotive engineers, dynamicists and students.

This textbook – a result of the author’s many years of research and teaching – brings together diverse concepts of the versatile tool of multibody dynamics, combining the efforts of many researchers in the field of mechanics.

A rigorous analysis and description of general motion in mechanical systems, which includes over 400 figures illustrating every concept, and a large collection of useful exercises. Ideal for students studying mechanical engineering, and as a reference for graduate students and researchers.

Modeling and analysing multibody systems require a comprehensive understanding of the kinematics and dynamics of rigid bodies. In this volume, the relevant fundamental principles are first reviewed in detail and illustrated in conformity with the multibody formalisms that follow. Whatever the kind of system (tree-like structures, closed-loop mechanisms, systems containing flexible beams or involving tire/ground contact, wheel/rail contact, etc), these multibody formalisms have a common feature in the proposed approach, viz, the symbolic generation of most of the ingredients needed to set up the model. The symbolic approach chosen, specially dedicated to multibody systems, affords various advantages: it leads to a simplification of the theoretical formulation of models, a considerable reduction in the size of generated equations and hence in resulting computing time, and also enhanced portability of the multibody models towards other specific environments. Moreover, the generation of multibody models as symbolic toolboxes proves to be an excellent pedagogical medium in teaching mechanics.