Damping Properties and Energy Evaluation of A Regenerative Shock Absorber

Abstract

This paper presents dynamics analysis of a regenerative shock absorber using a linkage mechanism as motion transmission developed from a valid kinematics analysis. The main objective of this study is to obtain force and energy regeneration properties, which is followed by regeneration efficiency. Physical based models are adopted from the structural design and mathematical models are derived in order to conduct numerical investigations. Parameters are determined by estimation and measurement, while sinusoidal displacement input and its derivations are used to study system behaviors. In fixed amplitude and frequency, the total damping force is explored in time, displacement and velocity response, while regenerative power is compared to mechanical power in time domain for gaining efficiency. The result shows that asymmetry occurs in force– velocity curve which is influenced by mass inertias of epicyclic gears. In different amplitudes and frequencies, the damping nature, harvested power and efficiency are studied and linked with regard to the proportion of mechanical and electrical force. The result indicates that the electrical force has much contributed in low range of amplitudes and frequency, which is followed by energy harvesting and regeneration efficiency.