Combined Experimental and Flexible Multibody Dynamic Investigation of High Energy Impact Induced Driveline Vibration

Abstract

Lightly damped non-linear dynamic driveline components are subjected to excitation with rapid application of clutch and/or throttle. Modern thin-walled driveshaft tubes respond with a plethora of structural-acoustic modes under such impulsive conditions, which are onomatopoeically referred to as clonk in the vehicle industry. The underlying mechanisms for the occurrence of this phenomenon are investigated, using combined experimentation and flexible multi-body dynamics under impulsive impact conditions. The coincidence of high-frequency structural modes, coupled with acoustic response is highlighted for the broad-band spectral response of the hollow driveshaft tubes. The cyclic relationship of clonk with the shuffle response of the driveline system is also established for transient decay of the clonk phenomenon. In particular, the multi-body model is used to ascertain the effect of vehicle laden state on the propensity of driveline clonk, an approach not hitherto reported in literature.