Dual compensation strategy for real‐time hybrid testing

Real‐time hybrid testing is an experimental technique for evaluating the dynamic responses of structural systems under seismic loading. Servo‐hydraulic actuators, by nature, induce inevitable time delay between the command and the achieved displacements. This delay would lead to incorrect test results and even cause instability of the system; therefore, delay compensation is critical for stability and accuracy of hybrid simulations of structural dynamic response. In this paper, a dual delay compensation strategy is proposed by a combination of a phase lead compensator and a restoring force compensator. An outer‐loop feed‐forward phase lead compensator is derived by introducing the inverse model in the z domain. The adaptive law based on the gradient algorithm is used to estimate the system delay in the format of parametric model during the test. It is shown mathematically that the parameter in the delay estimator is guaranteed to converge. The restoring force compensator is adopted to improve the accuracy of experimental results especially when the structure is subjected to high frequency excitations. Finally, analytical simulations of an inelastic SDOF structure are conducted to investigate the feasibility of the proposed strategy. The accuracy of the dual compensation strategy is demonstrated through several shaking table tests. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of implicit HHT‐α integration algorithm for real‐time hybrid simulation

Real‐time hybrid simulation is a viable experiment technique to evaluate the performance of structures equipped with rate‐dependent seismic devices when subject to dynamic loading. The integration algorithm used to solve the equations of motion has to be stable and accurate to achieve a successful real‐time hybrid simulation. The implicit HHT α‐algorithm is a popular integration algorithm for conducting structural dynamic time history analysis because of its desirable properties of unconditional stability for linear elastic structures and controllable numerical damping for high frequencies. The implicit form of the algorithm, however, requires iterations for nonlinear structures, which is undesirable for real‐time hybrid simulation. Consequently, the HHT α‐algorithm has been implemented for real‐time hybrid simulation using a fixed number of substep iterations. The resulting HHT α‐algorithm with a fixed number of substep iterations is believed to be unconditionally stable for linear elastic structures, but research on its stability and accuracy for nonlinear structures is quite limited. In this paper, a discrete transfer function approach is utilized to analyze the HHT α‐algorithm with a fixed number of substep iterations. The algorithm is shown to be unconditionally stable for linear elastic structures, but only conditionally stable for nonlinear softening or hardening structures. The equivalent damping of the algorithm is shown to be almost the same as that of the original HHT α‐algorithm, while the period elongation varies depending on the structural nonlinearity and the size of the integration time‐step. A modified form of the algorithm is proposed to improve its stability for use in nonlinear structures. The stability of the modified algorithm is demonstrated to be enhanced and have an accuracy that is comparable to that of the existing HHT α‐algorithm with a fixed number of substep iterations. Both numerical and real‐time hybrid simulations are conducted to verify the modified algorithm. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the modified algorithm for real‐time testing. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stability analysis for real‐time pseudodynamic and hybrid pseudodynamic testing with multiple sources of delay

Real‐time pseudodynamic (PSD) and hybrid PSD test methods are experimental techniques to obtain the response of structures, where restoring force feedback is used by an integration algorithm to generate command displacements. Time delays in the restoring force feedback from the physical test structure and/or the analytical substructure cause inaccuracies and can potentially destabilize the system. In this paper a method for investigating the stability of structural systems involved in real‐time PSD and hybrid PSD tests with multiple sources of delay is presented. The method involves the use of the pseudodelay technique to perform an exact mapping of fixed delay terms to determine the stability boundary. The approach described here is intended to be a practical one that enables the requirements for a real‐time testing system to be established in terms of system parameters when multiple sources of delay exist. Several real‐time testing scenarios with delay that include single degree of freedom (SDOF) and multi‐degree of freedom (MDOF) real‐time PSD/hybrid PSD tests are analyzed to illustrate the method. From the stability analysis of the real‐time hybrid testing of an SDOF test structure, delay‐independent stability with respect to either experimental or analytical substructure delay is shown to exist. The conditions that the structural properties must satisfy in order for delay‐independent stability to exist are derived. Real‐time hybrid PSD testing of an MDOF structure equipped with a passive damper is also investigated, where observations from six different cases related to the stability plane behavior are summarized. Throughout this study, root locus plots are used to provide insight and explanation of the behavior of the stability boundaries. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stability analysis of MDOF real‐time dynamic hybrid testing systems using the discrete‐time root locus technique

The time delay resulting from the servo hydraulic systems can potentially destabilize the real‐time dynamic hybrid testing (RTDHT) systems. In this paper, the discrete‐time root locus technique is adopted to investigate the delay‐dependent stability performance of MDOF RTDHT systems. Stability analysis of an idealized two‐story shear frame with two DOFs is first performed to illustrate the proposed method. The delay‐dependent stability condition is presented for various structural properties, time delay, and integration time steps. Effects of delay compensation methods on stability are also investigated. Then, the proposed method is applied to analyze the delay‐dependent stability of a single shaking table RTDHT system with an 18‐DOF finite element numerical substructure, and corresponding RTDHTs are carried out to verify the theoretical results. Furthermore, the stability behavior of a finite element RTDHT system with two physical substructures, loaded by twin shaking tables, is theoretically and experimentally investigated. All experimental results convincingly demonstrate that the delay‐dependent stability analysis on the basis of the discrete‐time root locus technique is feasible. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Real‐time hybrid testing using the unconditionally stable explicit CR integration algorithm

Real‐time hybrid testing combines experimental testing and numerical simulation, and provides a viable alternative for the dynamic testing of structural systems. An integration algorithm is used in real‐time hybrid testing to compute the structural response based on feedback restoring forces from experimental and analytical substructures. Explicit integration algorithms are usually preferred over implicit algorithms as they do not require iteration and are therefore computationally efficient. The time step size for explicit integration algorithms, which are typically conditionally stable, can be extremely small in order to avoid numerical stability when the number of degree‐of‐freedom of the structure becomes large. This paper presents the implementation and application of a newly developed unconditionally stable explicit integration algorithm for real‐time hybrid testing. The development of the integration algorithm is briefly reviewed. An extrapolation procedure is introduced in the implementation of the algorithm for real‐time testing to ensure the continuous movement of the servo‐hydraulic actuator. The stability of the implemented integration algorithm is investigated using control theory. Real‐time hybrid test results of single‐degree‐of‐freedom and multi‐degree‐of‐freedom structures with a passive elastomeric damper subjected to earthquake ground motion are presented. The explicit integration algorithm is shown to enable the exceptional real‐time hybrid test results to be achieved. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Equivalent force control method for generalized real‐time substructure testing with implicit integration

This paper presents a new method, called the equivalent force control method, for solving the nonlinear equations of motion in a real‐time substructure test using an implicit time integration algorithm. The method replaces the numerical iteration in implicit integration with a force‐feedback control loop, while displacement control is retained to control the motion of an actuator. The method is formulated in such a way that it represents a unified approach that also encompasses the effective force test method. The accuracy and effectiveness of the method have been demonstrated with numerical simulations of real‐time substructure tests with physical substructures represented by spring and damper elements, respectively. The method has also been validated with actual tests in which a Magnetorheological damper was used as the physical substructure. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stability analysis of SDOF real‐time hybrid testing systems with explicit integration algorithms and actuator delay

Real‐time hybrid testing is a method that combines experimental substructure(s) representing component(s) of a structure with a numerical model of the remaining part of the structure. These substructures are combined with the integration algorithm for the test and the servo‐hydraulic actuator to form the real‐time hybrid testing system. The inherent dynamics of the servo‐hydraulic actuator used in real‐time hybrid testing will give rise to a time delay, which may result in a degradation of accuracy of the test, and possibly render the system to become unstable. To acquire a better understanding of the stability of a real‐time hybrid test with actuator delay, a stability analysis procedure for single‐degree‐of‐freedom structures is presented that includes both the actuator delay and an explicit integration algorithm. The actuator delay is modeled by a discrete transfer function and combined with a discrete transfer function representing the integration algorithm to form a closed‐loop transfer function for the real‐time hybrid testing system. The stability of the system is investigated by examining the poles of the closed‐loop transfer function. The effect of actuator delay on the stability of a real‐time hybrid test is shown to be dependent on the structural parameters as well as the form of the integration algorithm. The stability analysis results can have a significant difference compared with the solution from the delay differential equation, thereby illustrating the need to include the integration algorithm in the stability analysis of a real‐time hybrid testing system. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Rosenbrock‐W method for real‐time dynamic substructuring and pseudo‐dynamic testing

A variant of the Rosenbrock‐W integration method is proposed for real‐time dynamic substructuring and pseudo‐dynamic testing. In this variant, an approximation of the Jacobian matrix that accounts for the properties of both the physical and numerical substructures is used throughout the analysis process. Only an initial estimate of the stiffness and damping properties of the physical components is required. It is demonstrated that the method is unconditionally stable provided that specific conditions are fulfilled and that the order accuracy can be maintained in the nonlinear regime without involving any matrix inversion while testing. The method also features controllable numerical energy dissipation characteristics and explicit expression of the target displacement and velocity vectors. The stability and accuracy of the proposed integration scheme are examined in the paper. The method has also been verified through hybrid testing performed of SDOF and MDOF structures with linear and highly nonlinear physical substructures. The results are compared with those obtained from the operator splitting method. An approach based on the modal decomposition principle is presented to predict the potential effect of experimental errors on the overall response during testing. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adaptive time series compensator for delay compensation of servo‐hydraulic actuator systems for real‐time hybrid simulation

Hydraulic actuators are typically used in a real‐time hybrid simulation to impose displacements to a test structure (also known as the experimental substructure). It is imperative that good actuator control is achieved in the real‐time hybrid simulation to minimize actuator delay that leads to incorrect simulation results. The inherent nonlinearity of an actuator as well as any nonlinear response of the experimental substructure can result in an amplitude‐dependent behavior of the servo‐hydraulic system, making it challenging to accurately control the actuator. To achieve improved control of a servo‐hydraulic system with nonlinearities, an adaptive actuator compensation scheme called the adaptive time series (ATS) compensator is developed. The ATS compensator continuously updates the coefficients of the system transfer function during a real‐time hybrid simulation using online real‐time linear regression analysis. Unlike most existing adaptive methods, the system identification procedure of the ATS compensator does not involve user‐defined adaptive gains. Through the online updating of the coefficients of the system transfer function, the ATS compensator can effectively account for the nonlinearity of the combined system, resulting in improved accuracy in actuator control. A comparison of the performance of the ATS compensator with existing linearized compensation methods shows superior results for the ATS compensator for cases involving actuator motions with predefined actuator displacement histories as well as real‐time hybrid simulations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel coupling Rosenbrock‐based algorithms for real‐time dynamic substructure testing

Real‐time testing with dynamic substructuring is a novel experimental technique capable of assessing the behaviour of structures subjected to dynamic loadings including earthquakes. The technique involves recreating the dynamics of the entire structure by combining an experimental test piece consisting of part of the structure with a numerical model simulating the remainder of the structure. These substructures interact in real time to emulate the behaviour of the entire structure. Time integration is the most versatile method for analysing the general case of linear and non‐linear semi‐discretized equations of motion. In this paper we propose for substructure testing, L‐stable real‐time (LSRT) compatible integrators with two and three stages derived from the Rosenbrock methods. These algorithms are unconditionally stable for uncoupled problems and entail a moderate computational cost for real‐time performance. They can also effectively deal with stiff problems, i.e. complex emulated structures for which solutions can change on a time scale that is very short compared with the interval of time integration, but where the solution of interest changes on a much longer time scale. Stability conditions of the coupled substructures are analysed by means of the zero‐stability approach, and the accuracy of the novel algorithms in the coupled case is assessed in both the unforced and forced conditions. LSRT algorithms are shown to be more competitive than popular Runge–Kutta methods in terms of stability, accuracy and ease of implementation. Numerical simulations and real‐time substructure tests are used to demonstrate the favourable properties of the proposed algorithms. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Improved control algorithm for real‐time substructure testing

Real‐time substructure testing is a novel method of testing structures under dynamic loading. The complete structure is separated into two substructures, one of which is tested physically at large scale and in real time, so that time‐dependent non‐linear behaviour of the substructure is realistically represented. The second substructure represents the surrounding structure, which is modelled numerically. In the current formulation this numerical substructure is assumed to remain linear. The two substructures interact in real‐time so that the response of the complete structure, incorporating the non‐linear behaviour of the physical substructure, is accurately represented. This paper presents several improvements to the linear numerical modelling of substructures for use in explicit time‐stepping routines for real‐time substructure testing. An extrapolation of a first‐order‐hold discretization is used which increases the accuracy of the numerical model over more direct explicit methods. Additionally, an integral form of the equation of motion is used in order to reduce the effects of noise and to take into account variations of the input over a time‐step. In order to take advantage of this integral form, interpolation of the model output is performed in order to smooth the output. The improvements are demonstrated using a series of substructure tests on a simple portal frame. While the testing approach is suitable for cases in which the physical substructure behaves non‐linearly, the results presented here are for fully linear systems. This enables comparisons to be made with analytical solutions, as well as with the results of tests based on the central difference method. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Operator‐splitting method for real‐time substructure testing

It has been shown that the operator‐splitting method (OSM) provides explicit and unconditionally stable solutions for quasi‐static pseudo‐dynamic substructure testing. However, the OSM provides only an explicit target displacement but not an explicit target velocity, so that it is essentially an implicit method for real‐time substructure testing (RST) when the velocity‐dependent restoring force is considered. This paper proposes a target velocity formulation based on the forward difference of the predicted displacements so as to render the OSM explicit for RST. The stability and accuracy of the resulting OSM‐RST algorithm are investigated. It is shown that the OSM‐RST is unconditionally stable so long as the non‐linear stiffness and damping are of the softening type (i.e. the tangent stiffness and damping never exceed the initial values). The stability of the OSM‐RST for structures with infinite tangent damping coefficient or stiffness is also proved, and the stability of the method for MDOF structures with a non‐classical damping matrix is demonstrated by an energy criterion. The effects of actuator delay and compensation are analysed based on the bilinear approximation of the actuator step response. Experiments on damped SDOF and MDOF structures verify that the stability of the OSM‐RST is preserved when the experimental substructure generates velocity‐dependent reaction forces, whereas the stability of real‐time substructure tests based on the central difference method is worsened by the damping of the specimen. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Considerations for the development of real‐time dynamic testing using servo‐hydraulic actuation

This paper presents a study of the use of servo‐hydraulic systems in the implementation of real‐time large‐scale structural testing methods in force control such as effective force testing (EFT) and in displacement control such as real‐time pseudodynamic testing (RPsD). Mathematical models for both types of control systems are presented and used to investigate the influences of servo‐systems on the overall system performance. Parameters investigated include the overall system dynamics, nonlinearities of servo‐systems, actuator damping, system mass including piston mass, and system response delay. Results of both numerical simulations and experiments showed that many of the influences of the servo‐hydraulic system that significantly affect the real‐time dynamic tests can be properly compensated through control schemes identified in this paper. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison between real‐time dynamic substructuring and shake table testing techniques for nonlinear seismic applications

Results from real‐time dynamic substructuring (RTDS) tests are compared with results from shake table tests performed on a two‐storey steel building structure model. At each storey, the structural system consists of a cantilevered steel column resisting lateral loads in bending. In two tests, a slender diagonal tension‐only steel bracing member was added at the first floor to obtain an unsymmetrical system with highly variable stiffness. Only the first‐storey structural components were included in the RTDS test program and a Rosenbrock‐W linearly implicit integration scheme was adopted for the numerical solution. The tests were performed under seismic ground motions exhibiting various amplitude levels and frequency contents to develop first and second mode‐dominated responses as well as elastic and inelastic responses. A chirp signal was also used. Coherent results were obtained between the shake table and the RTDS testing techniques, indicating that RTDS testing methods can be used to successfully reproduce both the linear and nonlinear seismic responses of ductile structural steel seismic force resisting systems. The time delay introduced by actuator‐control systems was also studied and a novel adaptive compensation scheme is proposed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Implementation and application of the unconditionally stable explicit parametrically dissipative KR‐α method for real‐time hybrid simulation

In real‐time hybrid simulations (RTHS) that utilize explicit integration algorithms, the inherent damping in the analytical substructure is generally defined using mass and initial stiffness proportional damping. This type of damping model is known to produce inaccurate results when the structure undergoes significant inelastic deformations. To alleviate the problem, a form of a nonproportional damping model often used in numerical simulations involving implicit integration algorithms can be considered. This type of damping model, however, when used with explicit integration algorithms can require a small time step to achieve the desired accuracy in an RTHS involving a structure with a large number of degrees of freedom. Restrictions on the minimum time step exist in an RTHS that are associated with the computational demand. Integrating the equations of motion for an RTHS with too large of a time step can result in spurious high‐frequency oscillations in the member forces for elements of the structural model that undergo inelastic deformations. The problem is circumvented by introducing the parametrically controllable numerical energy dissipation available in the recently developed unconditionally stable explicit KR‐α method. This paper reviews the formulation of the KR‐α method and presents an efficient implementation for RTHS. Using the method, RTHS of a three‐story 0.6‐scale prototype steel building with nonlinear elastomeric dampers are conducted with a ground motion scaled to the design basis and maximum considered earthquake hazard levels. The results show that controllable numerical energy dissipation can significantly eliminate spurious participation of higher modes and produce exceptional RTHS results. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Real‐time force control for servo‐hydraulic actuator systems using adaptive time series compensator and compliance springs

Servo‐hydraulic actuators have been widely used for experimental studies in engineering. They can be controlled in either displacement or force control mode depending on the purpose of a test. It is necessary to control the actuators in real time when the rate‐dependency effect of a test specimen needs to be accounted for under dynamic loads. Real‐time hybrid simulation (RTHS) and effective force testing (EFT) method, which can consider the rate‐dependency effect, have been known as viable alternatives to the shake table testing method. Due to the lack of knowledge in real‐time force control, however, the structures that can be tested with RTHS and EFT are fairly limited. For instance, satisfying the force boundary condition for axially stiff members is a challenging task in RTHS, while EFT has a difficulty to be implemented for nonlinear structures. In order to resolve these issues, this paper introduces new real‐time force control methods utilizing the adaptive time series (ATS) compensator and compliance springs. Unlike existing methods, the proposed force control methods do not require the structural modeling of a test structure, making it easy to be implemented especially for nonlinear structures. The force tracking performance of the proposed methods is evaluated for a small‐scale steel mass block system with a magneto‐rheological damper subjected to various target forces. Accuracy, time delay, and resonance response of these methods are discussed along with their force control performance for an axially stiff member. Overall, a satisfactory force tracking performance was observed by using the proposed force control methods.     

Actuator dynamics compensation based on upper bound delay for real‐time hybrid simulation

Real‐time hybrid simulation represents a powerful technique capable of evaluating the structural dynamic performance by combining the physical simulation of a complex and rate‐dependent portion of a structure with the numerical simulation of the remaining portion of the same structure. Initially, this paper shows how the stability of real‐time hybrid simulation with time delay depends both on compensation techniques and on time integration methods. In particular, even when time delay is exactly known, some combinations of numerical integration and displacement prediction schemes may reduce the response stability with conventional compensation methods and lead to unconditional instability in the worst cases. Therefore, to deal with the inaccuracy of prediction and the uncertainty of delay estimation, a nearly exact compensation scheme is proposed, in which the displacement is compensated by means of an upper bound delay and the desired displacement is picked out by an optimal process. Finally, the advantages of the proposed scheme over conventional delay compensation techniques are shown through numerical simulation and actual tests. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adaptive multi‐rate interface: development and experimental verification for real‐time hybrid simulation

Real‐time hybrid simulation (RTHS) is a powerful cyber‐physical technique that is a relatively cost‐effective method to perform global/local system evaluation of structural systems. A major factor that determines the ability of an RTHS to represent true system‐level behavior is the fidelity of the numerical substructure. While the use of higher‐order models increases fidelity of the simulation, it also increases the demand for computational resources. Because RTHS is executed at real‐time, in a conventional RTHS configuration, this increase in computational resources may limit the achievable sampling frequencies and/or introduce delays that can degrade its stability and performance. In this study, the Adaptive Multi‐rate Interface rate‐transitioning and compensation technique is developed to enable the use of more complex numerical models. Such a multi‐rate RTHS is strictly executed at real‐time, although it employs different time steps in the numerical and the physical substructures while including rate‐transitioning to link the components appropriately. Typically, a higher‐order numerical substructure model is solved at larger time intervals, and is coupled with a physical substructure that is driven at smaller time intervals for actuator control purposes. Through a series of simulations, the performance of the AMRI and several existing approaches for multi‐rate RTHS is compared. It is noted that compared with existing methods, AMRI leads to a smaller error, especially at higher ratios of sampling frequency between the numerical and physical substructures and for input signals with high‐frequency content. Further, it does not induce signal chattering at the coupling frequency. The effectiveness of AMRI is also verified experimentally. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Improving the inverse compensation method for real‐time hybrid simulation through a dual compensation scheme

Real‐time hybrid simulation combines experimental testing of physical substructure(s) and numerical simulation of analytical substructure(s), and thus enables the complete structural system to be considered during an experiment. Servo‐hydraulic actuators are typically used to apply the command displacements to the physical substructure(s). Inaccuracy and instability can occur during a real‐time hybrid simulation if the actuator delay due to servo‐hydraulic dynamics is not properly compensated. Inverse compensation is a means to negate actuator delay due to inherent servo‐hydraulic actuator dynamics during a real‐time hybrid simulation. The success of inverse compensation requires the use of a known accurate value for the actuator delay. The actual actuator delay however may not be known before the simulation. An estimation based on previous experience has to be used, possibly leading to inaccurate experimental results. This paper presents a dual compensation scheme to improve the performance of the inverse compensation method when an inaccurately estimated actuator delay is used in the method. The dual compensation scheme modifies the predicted displacement from the inverse compensation procedure using the actuator tracking error. Frequency response analysis shows that the dual compensation scheme enables the inverse compensation method to compensate for actuator delay over a range of frequencies when an inaccurately estimated actuator delay is utilized. Real‐time hybrid simulations of a single‐degree‐of‐freedom system with an elastomeric damper are conducted to experimentally demonstrate the effectiveness of the dual compensation scheme. Exceptional experimental results are shown to be achieved using the dual compensation scheme without the knowledge of the actual actuator delay a priori. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.