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Application Of The Fokker-Planck Equation For Quantifying Initial Condition Uncertainty Of Reversible Dynamic Systems, Troy S. Newhart
Application Of The Fokker-Planck Equation For Quantifying Initial Condition Uncertainty Of Reversible Dynamic Systems, Troy S. Newhart
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations
Characterizing the behavior of dynamic systems requires the inclusion of initial conditions to propagate behavior forward in time. More realistic representations of system behavior quantify uncertainty about the initial conditions to assess sensitivity, reliability, and other stochastic response parameters. In many engineering applications, the uncertain initial conditions may be unknown given a desired response. This research applies the Fokker-Planck equation to reversible dynamic systems of select multi-dimensional nonlinear differential equations as a means for predicting the uncertainty about initial conditions. An alternating directions implicit numerical scheme is used to numerically solve the Fokker-Planck equation for both forward and reversed equations …
Extension Of A Penalty Method For Numerically Solving Constrained Multibody Dynamic Problems, Troy Newhart
Extension Of A Penalty Method For Numerically Solving Constrained Multibody Dynamic Problems, Troy Newhart
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations
Numerical analysis of constrained static and multibody dynamic systems has become an integral part of engineering analysis with the continued improvements in technology and software availability. Many methods currently exist for numerically solving constrained static and dynamic systems. The applicability of a penalty method for constrained static solutions is observed in many academic texts and papers. The appeal for using a penalty method in statics pertains to its ease of implementation, computational suitability, and accuracy. This thesis extends a static penalty method for use with constrained multibody dynamics to observe if the penalty method’s benefits are similar for a dynamics …
Thermo-Mechanical System Identification Of A Shape Memory Alloy Actuated Mechanism, Cody Alexander Wright
Thermo-Mechanical System Identification Of A Shape Memory Alloy Actuated Mechanism, Cody Alexander Wright
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations
Shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators paired in an antagonistic arrangement can be used to produce mechanisms that replicate human biomechanics. To investigate this proposal, the biomechanical articulation of the elbow by means of the biceps brachii muscle is compared with that of a SMA actuated arm. This is accomplished by parametric analysis of a crank-slider kinematic mechanism actuated, first, with an experimentally characterized SMA wire and then an idealized musculotendon actuator based on actuation properties of muscles published in the literature. Next, equations of motion for the system dynamics of the SMA actuated mechanism are derived and phase portrait analysis …