Inerter-like devices used for vibration isolation: A historical perspective

• Published in: Journal of the Franklin Institute Vol. 358; no. 1; pp. 1070 - 1086
• Main Authors: Kuhnert, Willian M., Gonçalves, Paulo J. Paupitz, Ledezma-Ramirez, Diego F., Brennan, Michael J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elmsford Elsevier Ltd 01-01-2021; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Components; Electricity; Frequencies; Isolation systems; Literature reviews; Mechanical components; Mechanical devices; Mechanical impedance; Performance degradation; Vibration
• ISSN: 0016-0032; 1879-2693; 0016-0032
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jfranklin.2020.11.007

Recently, a lot of attention has been given to a mechanical device known as the inerter. It is a mechanical component that can be compared to a capacitor with two ungrounded terminals in the mechanical-electrical systems analogy. In this paper, it is shown that although the concept of an inerter as a separate mechanical element is relatively new, there are several well-established vibration isolation systems that exhibit similar behavior to a simple lumped parameter system containing an inerter. Through a review of the literature, a link is established between the old and new ideas. Furthermore, a comparison between the systems is carried out using the quantities of mechanical impedance and displacement transmissibility. The advantages and disadvantages of using the inerter in vibration isolation are discussed, and a simple way of improving the high-frequency performance without severely degrading the low-frequency performance is described.