Experimental determination of optimal actuator locations based on theactuator power factor

摘要

The actuator power factor, defined as the ratio of the structural dissipative mechanical power to the apparent supplied electrical power, describes the effectiveness of the electromechanical actuator to convert supplied electrical energy to mechanical energy which in-turn produces the desired structural response. If measured experimentally, it can be used to optimize the actuator location for complex structures. This paper describes the actuator location optimization for an aircraft panel type structure with applications in aircraft interior acoustic and structural vibration control. The experimental power factor results for this structure were validated by comparing the maximum power factor in a given region to the specific panel mode shape as generated by a finite-element model. The results showed good correlation between the experimentally measured power factor data and the panel mode shapes. The future implications of this work are towards the design of a power factor meter for a cost as well as a time effective means of actuator location optimization.