Analytical modeling and optimal design of a MR damper with power generation

Magnetorheological (MR) dampers have promising applications for providing instantaneous and controllable damping to attenuate vibrations in various dynamic systems. Currently, the mechanical energy along with motion of the MR damper is mostly transferred into heat energy and is finally dissipated into environments. In view of recycling usage of such dissipated energy in MR damper systems, the MR damper with power generation is consequently needed in practical applications. In this paper, a MR damper with compact power generation mechanism in parallel is proposed, which can provide both damping effect and recycling energy from mechanical vibration. The physical modeling of the MR damper with power generation in a non-dimensional parametric analysis is developed to give a clear and quantitative insight of performance influences from parameter design. The analytical modeling was validated by comparison results with finite element analysis of this prototype. Then, a performance-oriented parameter optimization design of this prototype is proposed, which could achieve a maximum damping force with fairly large dynamic range for the MR damper and a maximum resulting energy for the power generator subject to physical structure limitation under various external excitations in applications.