Mechanical Systems (PDF)

This essential textbook covers analysis and control of engineering mechanisms, which include almost any apparatus with moving parts used in daily life, from musical instruments to robots. The text  presents both vibrations and controls with considerable breadth and depth using a unified notation. It strikes a nice balance between the analytical and the practical.  This text contains enough material for a two semester sequence, but it can also be used in a single semester course combining the two topics. Mechanical Systems: A Unified Approach to Vibrations and Controls presents a common notation and approach to these closely related areas. Examples from the both vibrations and controls components are integrated throughout this text.

This book also:

·         Presents a unified approach to vibrations and controls, including an excellent diagram that simultaneously discusses embedding classical vibrations (mechanical systems) in a discussion of models, inverse models, and open and closed loop control

·         Makes a careful connection of the Lagrangian approach and state space

·         Introduces the reader to a formal approach to linearization, something that every engineering student should know, but which is not included in many programs or undergraduate textbooks

·         Discusses simulation of nonlinear systems for comparison with and evaluation of the usual linear approximations

·         Features a concise discussion of DC motors, affording a more realistic approach to controls using voltage inputs instead of disembodied forces and torques

·         Includes a final chapter that addresses feedback linearization generally and in the context of robots with purely revolute joints