In the era of advancing technology, the demand for specialized engineering materials has risen significantly. Active Mechanical Metamaterials (AMMs) offer a novel approach to engineering materials with tunable mechanical properties. This research focuses on developing tunable damping active mechanical metamaterials (AMMs) by incorporating magnetorheological fluid (MRF) damper into a compliant mechanism unit cell. This unit cell transforms linear displacement into rotation at the centre, precisely where the damper is located. First, The AMM unit cell has been designed with a compliant structure that converts the unit input into an embedded MRF damper. After that, the dynamic behaviour of the unit cell was studied by combining analytical and FEM modelling to characterize the stiffness and damping of the unit cell. A prototype has been built, and the damping and stiffness have also been experimentally characterized.
The results highlight key findings, including numerical data, offering insights into the efficiency of the unit cell's compliant transformation mechanism and the tunable damping achieved through MRF dampers, where the damping ratio can be adjusted from 0.02 to approximately 0.03 when 1.4 A of current is applied. This study represents a significant advancement in active mechanical metamaterials, showcasing a novel unit cell design where the magnetorheological fluid has been used for the first time to achieve tunable damping in active mechanical metamaterials.
The success of this study is evident in the convergence of theoretical predictions with experimental outcomes, emphasizing the robustness of the proposed design and modelling methodologies. The implications of this research extend to diverse applications in structural engineering and vibration control, with a particular focus on high-tech systems. These findings provide valuable guidance for researchers and engineers working in high-tech industries, offering practical insights that can significantly impact the development and implementation of innovative solutions in these fields.