Title: Fundamentals of Mechanical Vibrations and Single-Degree-of-Freedom Systems
1. Introduction to Mechanical Vibrations
Mechanical vibration is the oscillatory motion of a system about an equilibrium position. In
engineering practice, we care about vibrations because excessive oscillations can lead to
fatigue, noise, discomfort, or even failure of components. At the same time, controlled
vibrations are useful in devices such as accelerometers, seismographs, MEMS sensors, and
resonant filters. A solid understanding of vibration theory begins with the simplest dynamic
model: the single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) system.
A degree of freedom is the minimum number of independent coordinates needed to
describe the motion of a system. For an SDOF system, one coordinate, typically a
displacement, fully characterizes its configuration at any instant in time. Most real
structures are multi-degree-of-freedom, but over a range of frequencies or in specific
modes, their motion can often be approximated by one dominant coordinate, which is why
the SDOF model is so widely used.
2. The Idealized Mass–Spring System
The classical SDOF model consists of a mass m attached to a linear spring of stiffness k,
constrained to move in one direction. The spring is assumed to be massless and linear,
meaning its force is proportional to displacement: F_s = k x. The mass is taken as rigid with
all mass lumped at a single coordinate. This idealization allows us to write Newton’s second
law directly in terms of a single differential equation.
Let x(t) be the displacement of the mass from its static equilibrium position. Taking the
positive direction upward or to the right (depending on the chosen coordinate system), the
equation of motion for the undamped, unforced mass–spring system is
m x''(t) + k x(t) = 0.
This is a second-order linear homogeneous ordinary differential equation with constant
coefficients. Its solution describes free vibration: motion that occurs after an initial
displacement or velocity is applied, with no external forcing and no damping.
3. Natural Frequency and General Solution
To solve the equation m x'' + k x = 0, we assume a trial solution of the form x(t) = A e^{st},
where s is a complex constant. Substituting into the equation gives
m s^2 A e^{st} + k A e^{st} = 0 → (m s^2 + k) A e^{st} = 0.
Since A e^{st} is not identically zero, we obtain the characteristic equation
m s^2 + k = 0 → s^2 = -k/m → s = ± i √(k/m).
We define the undamped natural circular frequency as
ω_n = √(k/m).
Using this definition, the general solution can be written as
x(t) = C_1 cos(ω_n t) + C_2 sin(ω_n t),
or equivalently in amplitude–phase form,
x(t) = X cos(ω_n t - φ),
where X and φ are determined from the initial conditions x(0) and x'(0). The natural
frequency in cycles per second (Hz) is
f_n = ω_n / (2π).
The physical interpretation is that, once disturbed, the SDOF system oscillates forever at its
natural frequency with constant amplitude, provided no damping or external forces are
present.
4. Energy Perspective
The motion of an undamped SDOF system can be viewed in terms of energy exchange. The
system has kinetic energy T and potential energy V given by
T = (1/2) m x'^2, V = (1/2) k x^2.
During free vibration, energy oscillates between kinetic and potential forms while the total
mechanical energy E = T + V remains constant. At maximum displacement, all energy is
potential; at the equilibrium position, all energy is kinetic. This perspective is useful in
approximate methods and in understanding why any energy input near the natural
frequency can cause large oscillations.
5. Including Damping
Real systems experience energy dissipation, which we model with damping. The simplest
idealization is viscous damping, where the damping force is proportional to velocity:
F_c = c x',
with c the damping coefficient. The equation of motion becomes
m x'' + c x' + k x = 0.
To analyze this, we rewrite using the undamped natural frequency ω_n = √(k/m) and define
the damping ratio ζ by
ζ = c / (2 √(k m)).
The characteristic equation is
m s^2 + c s + k = 0 → s^2 + 2 ζ ω_n s + ω_n^2 = 0.
The roots depend on the value of ζ:
- 0 < ζ < 1: underdamped, complex conjugate roots
- ζ = 1: critically damped, repeated real root
- ζ > 1: overdamped, distinct real roots
Most lightly damped mechanical systems are underdamped (ζ << 1).
6. Underdamped Free Vibration
For 0 < ζ < 1, the roots are
s = -ζ ω_n ± i ω_d,
where the damped natural frequency is
ω_d = ω_n √(1 - ζ^2).
The solution is
x(t) = e^{-ζ ω_n t} [C_1 cos(ω_d t) + C_2 sin(ω_d t)]
or in amplitude–phase form,
x(t) = X e^{-ζ ω_n t} cos(ω_d t - φ).
The motion is oscillatory but with exponentially decaying amplitude. The decay rate is set
by ζ ω_n, and the oscillation frequency is slightly less than the undamped natural
frequency. For light damping (ζ small), ω_d ≈ ω_n.
7. Logarithmic Decrement
A common way to estimate damping experimentally is the logarithmic decrement δ, defined
for an underdamped system as
δ = ln(x(t_n) / x(t_{n+1})),
where x(t_n) and x(t_{n+1}) are successive peak amplitudes. For constant damping ratio ζ,
the peaks decrease geometrically, and the logarithmic decrement relates to ζ by
δ = 2π ζ / √(1 - ζ^2).
For small ζ, this simplifies to δ ≈ 2π ζ. Measuring several peaks and averaging improves
accuracy. This relation provides a practical route from measured decay in free vibration
tests to the damping ratio used in analytical models.
8. Equivalent SDOF Models
Many engineering structures, such as machine tools, aircraft wings, and building floors,
have distributed mass and stiffness. However, over a limited frequency band or for a
dominant mode, their motion can be represented by an equivalent SDOF system. The
equivalent mass m_eq and stiffness k_eq are chosen so that the model has the same natural
frequency and similar mode shape in the region of interest. This idea underlies modal
analysis, where complex systems are decomposed into independent SDOF modal
coordinates.
In summary, the SDOF model provides the foundation for understanding mechanical
vibrations. It introduces key ideas such as natural frequency, damping ratio, and free
vibration response, which are extended to forced vibration, multiple degrees of freedom,
and continuous systems in more advanced topics.
