Dynamic analogy between an electromagnetic shunt damper and a tuned mass damper

An electromagnetic shunt damper (EMSD) is composed of an electromagnetic damper connected to one or more RLC shunt circuits. Through a theoretical comparison, this paper reveals the similarity and difference between an EMSD and a tuned mass damper (TMD), both of which are resonant-type vibration absorbers. The equivalent mass, stiffness and damping coefficient of the EMSD are derived based on the transfer functions of structures with a TMD or an EMSD, and the functions of circuit capacitance and inductance are discussed accordingly. The optimal parameters of the RLC circuit in the EMSD are obtained through H ∞ optimization. Despite their different optimal parameters, the EMSD and TMD exhibit comparable control performance with the same equivalent mass ratio. The dynamic analogy between these two types of dampers offers a new perspective for understanding novel EMSDs, given that TMDs have previously been extensively studied. The potentials and constraints of the EMSD are further discussed through numerical case studies in which EMSD control performance is examined in different situations.