Spring and Damper
Use the Spring and Damper subnode to apply elastic and/or viscous forces to restrict and control the relative motion on joint. You can also use a dashpot to model various kind of losses in the joint. This node can be added more than once if required, and the effects will then be superimposed. Each joint type has different settings sections.
The Spring and Damper subnode can be added to the Prismatic Joint, Hinge Joint, Cylindrical Joint, Screw Joint, Planar Joint, Ball Joint, Slot Joint, and Reduced Slot Joint. The contents of the settings sections will differ between different joint types
The Theory for Springs and Dampers on Joints section describes the theory for each of the different types of springs and dampers: translational, rotational, inclination angle, and axial rotation.
Spring and Damper: Translational
This section is available for the Prismatic Joint, Cylindrical Joint, Screw Joint, Planar Joint, Slot Joint, and Reduced Slot Joint nodes.
Enter values or expressions for the following:
•
Spring constant ku.
•
Pre-deformation u0.
•
Damping coefficient cu.
For the Planar Joint, enter values or expressions for the Initial spring axis es0. Also select the Initial damper axis — Same as spring axis or User defined. For User defined enter values or expressions for ed0.
Spring and Damper: Rotational
This section is available for the Hinge Joint, Cylindrical Joint, Screw Joint, Planar Joint, and Reduced Slot Joint nodes.
Enter values or expressions for the following:
•
Spring constant kθ.
•
Pre-deformation θ0.
•
Damping coefficient cθ.
Spring and Damper: Inclination Angle
This section is available for Ball Joint and Slot Joint nodes.
Select the Initial reference axis — Initial source axis, Initial destination axis, or User defined. For User defined enter values for eR0.
Enter values or expressions for the following:
•
Spring constant kθ.
•
Pre-deformation θ0.
•
Damping coefficient cθ.
Spring and Damper: Axial Rotation
This section is available for Ball Joint and Slot Joint nodes.
Enter values or expressions for the following:
•
Spring constant kψ.
•
Pre-deformation ψ0.
•
Damping coefficient cψ.
Location in User Interface
Context Menus
 Multibody Dynamics>Prismatic Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Hinge Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Cylindrical Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Screw Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Planar Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Ball Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Slot Joint>Spring and Damper
 Multibody Dynamics>Reduced Slot Joint>Spring and Damper
Ribbon
Physics tab with Prismatic Joint, Hinge Joint, Cylindrical Joint, Screw Joint, Planar Joint, Ball Joint, Slot Joint, or Reduced Slot Joint selected in the model tree:
Attributes>Spring and Damper