Development and analysis of a variable stiffness damper using an MR bladder

This paper presents the development of a magnetorheological (MR) fluid-based variable stiffness damper and analysis of its applications in vibration suppression. The MR fluid isolator used a MR valve control unit and bladders to achieve a continuously variable stiffness and damping of relatively large scope. A mathematical model of the isolator was derived, a prototype of the MR fluid isolator was fabricated, and its dynamic behaviour was measured in vibration under various applied magnetic fields. The effective stiffness and damping coefficients of the isolator under various magnetic fields were identified and the dynamic performance of the isolator was evaluated by simulation. The simulation results demonstrated that the MR bladder system developed can efficiently suppress structural vibrations.