Force and Stress Simulation in Experimentable Digital Twins Using the Transfer Matrix Method

Applied Mechanics, vol. 6, pp. 8

Abstract

Experimentable Digital Twins are capable of combining different simulation domains on a system level. This has been shown for a multitude of simulation domains, e.g., rigid body dynamics, control, sensors, kinematics, etc., and application scenarios, e.g., automotive, space, and industrial engineering. In our work, we investigate how to include structural loads into an Experimentable Digital Twin while maintaining computational efficiency and interoperability on a system level. We combine rigid body dynamics with the transfer matrix method to simulate forces and stresses. We show our approach for statically determinate beam structures in a simulation on a system level and validate it experimentally and numerically with static and dynamic example problems. The results show a strong agreement in these comparisons, confirming the accuracy and reliability of our method. For practical applications, we see force and stress simulation using the transfer matrix method as an additional tool to facilitate simulation-based engineering in the early stages of structural design processes, e.g., when dealing with uncertain loading conditions and operational complexity on a system level.

Authors 6

1. Sebastian Schmid corresponding Aachen Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design (SLA), RWTH Aachen University, Wüllnerstr. 7, 52062 Aachen, Germany

2. Dorit Kaufmann Aachen Institute for Man-Machine Interaction

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Man-Machine Interaction (MMI), RWTH Aachen University, Im Süsterfeld 9, 52072 Aachen, Germany

3. Finn Eggers Aachen Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design (SLA), RWTH Aachen University, Wüllnerstr. 7, 52062 Aachen, Germany

4. Ioannis Valais Aachen Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design (SLA), RWTH Aachen University, Wüllnerstr. 7, 52062 Aachen, Germany

5. Kai‐Uwe Schröder Aachen Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lightweight Design (SLA), RWTH Aachen University, Wüllnerstr. 7, 52062 Aachen, Germany

6. Jürgen Roßmann Aachen Institute for Man-Machine Interaction

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Man-Machine Interaction (MMI), RWTH Aachen University, Im Süsterfeld 9, 52072 Aachen, Germany