Application of nonsmooth modelling techniques to the dynamics of a flexible impacting beam

Non-smooth modelling techniques have been successfully applied to lumped mass-type structures for modelling phenomena such as vibro-impact and friction oscillators. In this paper, the application of these techniques to continuous elements using the example of a cantilever beam is considered. Employing a Galerkin reduction to form an N -degree-of-freedom modal model, a technique for modelling impact phenomena using a non-smooth dynamics approach is demonstrated. Numerical simulations computed using the non-smooth model are compared with experimentally recorded data for a flexible beam constrained to impact on one side. A method for dealing with sticking motions when numerically simulating the beam motion is presented. In addition, choosing the dimension of the model based on power spectra of experimentally recorded time series is discussed.