Biological Vibration Damping Strategies and Mechanisms

Excessive vibration in civil and mechanical systems can lead to structural damage or harmful noise. Structural vibration can be mitigated by reducing the energy of the vibration source or by isolating the external disturbance from the target structure. Depending on the tunability and power consumption of the system, existing vibration control strategies are divided into active, passive and semi-active types, providing a more stable and efficient solution for vibration control. However, conventional damping structures have difficulty in meeting the requirements of wide frequency range and high precision damping under complex operating conditions. Therefore, the design of efficient damping structures is one of the key challenges in the development of vibration control technology. Organisms have evolved over millions of years to effectively damp vibrations through special structures and composite materials to ensure their survival. Opening up damping vibration isolation technology from a bionic perspective can meet the frequency requirements of vibration damping and guarantee higher output accuracy of machinery. This review summarizes the basic principles of vibration control and analyses the vibration control strategies for different damping materials and damping structures. Meanwhile, various models of bio-damped structures are outlined. Moreover, the current status and recent progress of research on bionic damped structures based on bio-vibration control strategies are discussed. Finally, new perspectives on future developments in the field of bionic damped vibration control techniques are also presented. A comprehensive understanding of existing vibration damping mechanisms and new methods of bionic damping design will certainly trigger important applications of precision vibration control in the fields of aerospace, rail transportation and mechanical systems.