Modelling and testing of the force-generating characteristics of magnetorheological dampers

This paper presents a model for a magnetorheological damper, and subsequent experimental results. Two cylindrical piston type MR dampers, which develop almost identical friction and viscous forces, were tested. These dampers were designed to provide different combinations of fluid flow and magnetic field orientation. In one damper, the magnetic field and magnetic field orientation are designed to be primarily parallel to each other, and in the other damper, the field and flow are designed to be perpendicular. Each actuator was tested under different conditions of applied current and piston speed, and the force-generating characteristics were studied. The two damper designs will be introduced and a comparison between results from the model and the experiments will be made. In general, the model captures the force-generating characteristics of the dampers; however, it does not account for field-flow orientations.