• Computational Structural Engineering : An International Journal
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.61-68
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• 2003

A recently developed semi-active control system employing magneto-rheological (MR) fluid dampers is applied to vibration control of a wind excited tall building. The semi-active control system with MR fluid dampers appears to have the reliability of passive control devices and the adaptability of fully active control systems. The system requires only small power source, which is critical during severe events, when the main power source may fail. Numerical simulation studies are performed to demonstrate the efficiency of the MR dampers on the third ASCE benchmark problem. Multiple MR dampers are assumed to be installed in the 76-story building. Genetic algorithm is applied to determine the optimal locations and capacities of the MR dampers. Clipped optimal controller is designed to control the MR dampers based on the acceleration feedback. To verify the robustness with respect to the variation of the external wind force, several cases with different wind forces are considered in the numerical simulation. Simulation results show that the semi-actively controlled MR dampers can effectively reduce both the peak and RMS responses the tall building under various wind force conditions. The control performance of the MR dampers for wind is found to be fairly similar to the performance of an active tuned mass damper.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.243-250
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• 2002

Semi-active control devices have received significant attention in recent Years because they offer the adaptability of active-control devices without requiring the associated large power sources. Magnetorheological(MR) dampers are semiactive control devices that use MR fluids to produce controllable dampers. This paper applies sliding mode control method using target variation rate of Lyapunov function for the control of structures by use of MR dampers. The three-story building model under earthquake excitation is analyzed by installing a MR damper in the first-story. The performance of semi-active controllers designed by clipped-optimal algorithm and modified sliding mode control algorithm is compared to the performance of passive-type MR dampers. The results indicate that semi-active controllers achieve a greater reduction of responses than passive-type system and especially the controller by modified sliding mode control method shows a good applicability in the view of response control and control force.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.831-846
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• 2015

Magneto-Rheological (MR) dampers are being used increasingly because of their adaptability to control algorithms and reliability of passive systems. In this paper, an extensive investigation on performance of MR dampers in semi-active and passive modes has been carried out. It is observed that the overall energy dissipation by MR dampers in passive-on modes is higher than that in semi-active modes for most of the competitive semi-active controllers. Based on the energy dissipation pattern, a novel semi-active controller, termed as "Simple Passive Semi-Active Controller", has been proposed for MR dampers. This controller can be emulated by a simple passive hardware proposed in this paper. The proposed concept of controller "hardware emulation" is innovative and can also be implemented for other semi-active devices for control algorithms of certain form. The effectiveness and reliability of the proposed controller has been investigated extensively through numerical simulations. It has been demonstrated that the proposed controller is competitive to or more effective than other widely used / investigated semi-active controllers.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.291-306
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• 2014

In this paper the progressive collapse resisting capacity of steel moment frames with MR dampers is evaluated, and a preliminary design procedure for the dampers to prevent progressive collapse is suggested. Parametric studies are carried out using a beam-column subassemblage with varying natural period, yield strength, and damper force. Then the progressive collapse potentials of 15-story steel moment frames installed with MR dampers are evaluated by nonlinear dynamic analysis. The analysis results of the model structures showed that the MR dampers are effective in preventing progressive collapse of framed structures subjected to sudden loss of a first story column. The effectiveness is more noticeable in the structure with larger vertical deflection subjected to larger inelastic deformation. The maximum responses of the structure installed with the MR dampers designed to meet a given target dynamic response factor generally coincided well with the target value on the conservative side.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2002.04a
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• pp.149-156
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• 2002

This paper examines the ASCE first generation benchmark problem for a seismically excited cable-stayed bridge, and proposes a new semi-active control strategy focusing on inclusion of effects of control- structure interaction. In this study, magnetorheological (MR) fluid dampers, which belong to the class of controllable fluid dampers, are proposed as the supplemental damping devices, and a clipped-optimal control algorithm, shown to perform well in previous studies involving MR fluid dampers, is employed. The dynamic model for MR fluid dampers is considered as a modified Bouc-Wen model, which is obtained from data based on experimental results for large-scale dampers. Numerical results show that the performance of the proposed semi-active control strategy using MR fluid dampers is quite effective.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.53-74
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• 2016

This paper presents an experimental study on constructing a tunable secondary suspension for high-speed trains using magneto-rheological fluid dampers (referred to as MR dampers hereafter), in the interest of improving lateral ride comfort. Two types of MR dampers (type-A and type-B) with different control ranges are designed and fabricated. The developed dampers are incorporated into a secondary suspension of a full-scale high-speed train carriage for rolling-vibration tests. The integrated rail vehicle runs at a series of speeds from 40 to 380 km/h and with different current inputs to the MR dampers. The dynamic performance of the two suspension systems and the ride comfort rating of the rail vehicle are evaluated using the accelerations measured during the tests. In this way, the effectiveness of the developed MR dampers for attenuating vibration is assessed. The type-A MR dampers function like a stiffness component, rather than an energy dissipative device, during the tests with different running speeds. While, the type-B MR dampers exhibit significant damping and high current input to the dampers may adversely affect the ride comfort. As part of an ongoing investigation on devising an effective MR secondary suspension for lateral vibration suppression, this preliminary study provides an insight into dynamic behavior of high-speed train secondary suspensions and unique full-scale experimental data for optimal design of MR dampers suitable for high-speed rail applications.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 2003.09a
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• pp.467-472
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• 2003

The objective of optimal placement of dampers for a structure is to maximize the effectiveness of the vibration control with the same number of dampers. While many optimal placement methods of linear viscous dampers have been proposed and used, there are only a few methods for MR dampers. Here some optimal location indices for MR dampers are proposed, which are similar to those for linear viscous dampers and show how large the structural responses on each floor we. Every time an additional MR damper is implemented, the optimal location index on each floor is measured, and then the next damper is installed on the floor with the maximum location index. In these sequential procedures, the peak interstory drift, the peak interstory velocity and the absolute acceleration of each floor are selected as the optimal location indeices. Four different earthquakes with various scales are loaded to the 20-story nonlinear benchmark building model (Otori et at. 2000, 2002). Passive On/Off algorithms are used in order to represent the control algorithm of MR dampers.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.234-240
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• 2011

This study deals with progressive collapse of a structure retrofitted with MR dampers. In order to assess their effect of mitigation which prevents progressive collapse, control force ratio is defined by friction force of MR dampers divided by external force. First, simple model of a structure with MR dampers is suggested. Using the model, exact solution with the control force ratio is obtained. When and where the system is stopped is predicted by the derived solution. Through the dissipated energy by MR dampers during collapse event, equivalent damping ratio is derived. Finally, comparison of exact and equivalent solutions is presented.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.17 no.3_4
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• pp.493-526
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• 2004

Semiactive control systems have received considerable attention for protecting structures against natural hazards such as strong earthquakes and high winds, because they not only offer the reliability of passive control systems but also maintain the versatility and adaptability of fully active control systems. Among the many semiactive control devices, magnetorheological (MR) fluid dampers comprise one particularly promising class. In the field of civil engineering, much research and development on MR fluid damper-based control systems has been conducted since this unique semiactive device was first introduced to civil engineering applications in mid 1990s. In 2001, MR fluid dampers were applied to the full-scale in-service civil engineering structures for the first time. This state-of-the-art paper includes a detailed literature review of dynamic models of MR fluid dampers for describing their complex dynamic behavior and control algorithms considering the characteristics of MR fluid dampers. This extensive review provides references to semiactive control systems using MR fluid dampers. The MR fluid damper-based semiactive control systems are shown to have the potential for mitigating the responses of full-scale civil engineering structures under natural hazards.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
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• 2008.04a
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• pp.980-985
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• 2008

This paper presents vehicle road test of a semi-active suspension system equipped with continuously controllable magnetorheological (MR) dampers. As a first step, front and rear MR dampers are designed and manufactured based on the optimized damping force levels and mechanical dimensions required for a commercial middle-sized passenger vehicle. After experimentally evaluating dynamic characteristics of the MR dampers, the test vehicle is prepared for road test by integrating current suppliers, real-time data acquisition system and numerous sensors such as accelerometer and gyroscope. Subsequently, the manufactured four MR dampers (two for front parts and two for rear parts) are incorporated with the test vehicle and a skyhook control algorithm is formulated and realized in the data acquisition system. In order to emphasize practical aspect of the proposed MR suspension system, road tests are undertaken on proving grounds: bump and paved roads. The control responses are evaluated in both time and frequency domains by activating the MR dampers.