Volterra models of magnetorheological dampers and their application to vibrating systems

Magnetorheological dampers (MRD) are nowadays among the most promising semi-active devices used in automotive and structural engineering since they have small power requirements and low cost. Several models are studied to simulate the behavior of magnetorheological fluids which are characterized by strongly nonlinear viscoelastic hysteresis phenomena. These nonlinearities make many control logics ineffective because they fail when interfaced with complex models. The aim of this work is to optimize the damper behavior by controlling the mechanical vibrations of the system by a novel control algorithm. The magnetorheological behavior is modelled by a Volterra's equation which allows the use of an indirect optimal feedback control algorithm, named Proportional-Nth-order-Derivatives or PD(N). Numerical results show how the PD(N) achieves excellent results when compared with conventional controls.