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In this paper an alternative engineering solution to control vehicle steering wheel vibration is presented. The strategy is focused on the implementation of an effective tuned vibration absorber which also complies with time frame and costs requisites. The vibration levels in this case study are enhanced due resonances in the chassis frame and steering column. The tuned mass damper is basically a suspended mass attached on a vulcanized rubber body, aiming for the customer benefits; this solution can be classified as low cost as well low complexity for implementation. In this case study, a mid-size truck was used as a physical hardware and the data were collected through accelerometers on the steering wheel and other critical components. As a control factor, different tunings on different parts were applied to optimize the auxiliary system performance and robustness.

Damping treatments can be employed to mitigate vibration levels of structures near a specific resonance frequency. In the automotive area, constrained-layer dampers are the most employed, consisting on a viscoelastic layer bonded to a metallic-restrictor layer and to the structure itself subsequently. The damper’s frequency performance is strongly dependent upon the temperature of operation, which means that there is a need to characterize this relation in order to choose the best damping material, thus optimizing the application. In this paper, a laboratory test procedure known as the Oberst Beam Method was employed to characterize the frequency and temperature behavior of a commonly used damper. The test, which involves the Frequency Response Function measurement of a system composed by the damper applied to a standardized beam, followed a SAE procedure. An auxiliary CAE model was also developed and compared to physical test results.