Robust electromechanical finite element updating for piezoelectric structures effective coupling prediction

A robust electromechanical updating methodology for piezoelectric structures effective coupling prediction is first presented. It combines a finite element design experiment-based a priori sensitivity analysis, a response surface method-based meta-modelling and a genetic algorithm-based multi-objective optimization procedure. Then, this methodology is applied to cantilever aluminium thick plate and thin beam structures that are bonded, respectively, with two oppositely poled large and oppositely and same poled small piezoceramic patches on their upper and lower surfaces. In order to correlate corresponding first few effective modal electromechanical coupling coefficients, a mechanical updating is first considered; it consists of identifying the stiffness parameters of linear springs, modelling the clamp, so that relative deviations between the first few experimental and finite element short-circuit frequencies are minimized; then, an electric updating is considered; it consists of finding the patches' relative transverse blocked dielectric constants that minimize the first few experimental and finite element open-circuit frequencies relative deviations. Free vibrations are simulated using ANSYS®-coupled piezoelectric three-dimensional finite element. The obtained results have partially confirmed those from a former ad hoc updating method since the sensitivity analyses led to same stiffness parameters' irreducible number and only some effective modal electromechanical coupling coefficient test-model correlations were enhanced. © The Author(s) 2013.