Identification of Viscous Damping

This chapter discusses the dynamics of viscously damped systems. The chapter considers the identification of proportional viscous damping matrix from measured multi-modal damping factors. It discusses the problem of identification of general non-proportional viscous damping matrix from measured complex modes and frequencies. Symmetry-preserving damping identification for viscous damping matrix is outlined. An approach for direct identification of the damping matrix from the measured transfer function matrix is proposed. An algorithm is given for fitting a non-proportional viscous damping model, using the complex modes and complex frequencies. A method is proposed to identify a non-proportional viscous damping matrix in vibrating systems. The method is simple, direct and compatible with conventional modal testing procedures. The chapter describes the theory of symmetric damping matrix identification via a constrained optimization approach. Finally, the chapter describes a method based on the poles and residues of the measured transfer function.