Development and quasi-static modeling of a multi-channel magnetorheological damper with reduced velocity dependence

Abstract

Magnetorheological (MR) fluids, as advanced smart materials, exhibit excellent controllability and rapid response characteristics, enabling effective energy dissipation and significant reduction of dynamic loads. To overcome the nonlinear surge in damping force typically observed in MR dampers at high piston velocities, a novel configuration featuring a multi-channel bypass structure is proposed. Based on the Bingham plastic model, an optimization criterion for flow channel design is developed, incorporating the effects of localized energy dissipation. Integrating the flow and magnetic circuit optimization principles, the structural design of the damper is completed. A steady-state model of the proposed MR damper is established and experimentally validated. Under excitation currents ranging from 0.1 to 4 A, the maximum absolute error within the velocity range of 0.04–4.0 m/s was 183.16 N, occurring at 3 A, while the maximum relative error was 0.186, observed at 0.1 A. Test results demonstrate that, particularly in the high-velocity regime, the damping force exhibits reduced velocity dependence, and the steady-state model shows good agreement with experimental data, effectively predicting the damper’s output force across a broad operating range.