Active Control of Human-Induced Vibration

The design of floor structures supporting human occupants is increasingly being governed by vibration serviceability criteria. This is a result of increasing slenderness of modern floor systems and the trend for fewer partitions and other non-structural elements that otherwise would provide damping. At the same time, demands for better vibration performance are increasing. Occupants of high quality commercial, residential and hospital buildings will complain when excessive levels of vibration are felt. Also, many new items of scientific, healthcare and manufacturing equipment are sensitive to even very low levels of vibration and the structures that support them must be designed to ensure an appropriate vibration environment.To address these issues, the proposed research will investigate the use of active vibration control (AVC) to improve the vibration performance of floor structures under human-induced loading. This technology has already been shown by the PI to be feasible but it requires substantial further research to be established as a practical option for structural engineers and building developers. Hence, the key aims of the proposed research are:- To identify and develop control strategies suitable for active control of human-induced vibrations in floors and to evaluate improvements in floor vibration performance through simulations, laboratory testing and field installation. A full spectrum of complexity will be investigated, ranging from simple single-input-single-output collocated systems to much more complex adaptive model-based systems using multiple sensors and actuators.- To develop inertial actuation technology appropriate for AVC on floor structures, and hence to demonstrate that an AVC system can be `packaged' to be affordable, compact, robust and reliable. These are key technological hurdles that must be addressed if the benefits of AVC systems are to be realised in the highly commercial civil engineering sector.