Isolator Photo Gallery

ScudB_iso

SCUD-B Typical Avionics Component

The avionics shelves were made from hardwood. The wooden fibers may provide better damping then, say, an aluminum shelf. A possible disadvantage of wood is that the shelf would be unable to serve as an electrical or thermal ground plane.

The bushings are made from some type of rubber or elastomeric compound.

The bushings provide damping, but their main benefits are:

1. To render the isolated system as a single-degree-of-freedom system
2. To lower the natural frequency of the system

The isolators thus attenuate the shock and vibration energy which flows from the instrument shelf into the avionics component.

See also: Vibrationdata May 2010 Newsletter, Scud-B Missile Design

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jpl_wire_rope

NASA/JPL, Mars Science Laboratory

Sensor Support Electronics mounted on wire rope isolators

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imu_isolators

European Space Agency Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) mounted to outer bracket via four black conical isolators, vibration test

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truck_shock

Automobiles usually have a fundamental spring-mass frequency of 1 to 2.5 Hz depending on the model type.  The shock absorbers provide about 33% viscous damping.

 

 

 

 

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Titan_spring2

Titan II Missile Silo, Launch Control Room

The control room is mounted underground via huge isolation springs. A typical spring is shown in the background. The purpose is to isolate the control room from mechanical shock and vibration in the event of a nuclear strike above the launch site. The springs allow 18 inches of relative displacement. The control room could thus carry out a retaliatory strike, as ordered by the U.S. president.

This site is located south of Tucson, Arizona. It has been decommissioned and is now a museum.

– Tom Irvine

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A5MPLa

A5MPLb

Ariane 5 MLP Damper for Reducing Wind Response

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BAS

The USS Alabama World War II Battleship.
Photos Courtesy of Robert Towner.

Battleship_Alabama

An isolation spring inside the ship is shown in the center of the photo.

Battleship_Alabama1

Isolation springs for the ship’s piping system.

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tapei_bldg

refsheet-shock-absorber

RESTON-SA shock absorber for seismic isolation of Taipei City Hospital.  Link

 

 

2 thoughts on “Isolator Photo Gallery

  1. Hi Tom, loved your photos especially the Scud wooden mounting. I’ll bet it was an excellent isolator. We used Delrin to isolate very high frequency pyro shock components from microwave circuits. It was very effective. Thanks.

  2. Pingback: Damping References | Vibrationdata

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