Single-degree-of-freedom System and Free Vibration

The course on Mechanical Vibration is an important part of the Mechanical Engineering undergraduate curriculum. It is necessary for the development and the performance of many modern engineering products: automobiles, jet engines, rockets, bridges, electric motors, electric generators, and so on. Whenever a mechanical system contains storage elements for kinetic and potential energies, there will be vibration. The vibration of a mechanical system is a continual exchange between kinetic and potential energies. The vibration level is reduced by the presence of energy dissipation elements in the system. The problem of vibration is further accentuated because of the presence of time-varying external excitations, for example, the problem of resonance in a rotating machine, which is caused by the inevitable presence of rotor unbalance. There are many situations where the vibration is caused by internal excitation, which is dependent on the level of vibration. This type of vibration is known as selfexcited oscillations, for example, the failure of the Tacoma suspension bridge (Billah and Scanlan, 1991) and the fluttering of an aircraft wing. This course deals with the characterization and the computation of the response of a mechanical system caused by time-varying excitations, which can be independent of or dependent on vibratory response. In general, the vibration level of a component of a machine has to be decreased to increase its useful life. As a result, the course also