Non-Linear Vibration Isolators with Unknown Excitation and Unmodelled Dynamics: Sliding Mode Active Control

For a class of single-degree-of-freedom non-linear passive vibration isolators with unknown excitation and unmodelled dynamics, two sliding mode control methods—a conventional one and the other using a super-twisting algorithm—were proposed to complement and improve the performances and the robustness of the passive isolators. The proposed control methods only require the estimation of the loading and measured velocities of the isolators. Numerical simulations for a non-linear isolator with quasi-zero stiffness demonstrated that both methods were effective and easy to implement, and the one using a super-twisting algorithm was more promising from the perspective of practical application.