Nonlinear Aspects of the Performance of Centrifugal Pendulum Vibration Absorbers

Centrifugal pendulums have been used for many years to limit the torsional vibration of reciprocating engines. Recently small pendulums, designed to swing through amplitudes of about 45 deg, have been tested for lightweight aircraft engines. These have not functioned properly, and have been found to swing through much larger angles than expected, damaging the stops limiting motion of the pendulum counterweight. This paper investigates the large-amplitude motion of centrifugal-pendulum vibration absorbers.