An efficient Volterra series approach for identifying nonlinear system vibration responses to an excitation

This paper focuses on the issue of nonlinear vibration responses identification of nonlinear systems. An efficient algorithm is presented, in which the nonlinear vibration system under studied is decomposed into a multiple-input/single-output (MISO) linear system with a series of power characterized inputs based on Volterra series, and the nonlinear output responses of different orders are identified by taking power spectra operation to the input and output data, revealing the contributions of each order nonlinearity to the output of the system. Compared to the existing method, the input signal of the system required in the presented approach need not remain unchanged in waveform and adjustable in magnitude. To verify the approach, a classic Duffing–Van der Pol oscillator was simulated, obtaining results very close to the fourth order Runge–Kutta method. Finally, an experiment analysis was carried out, in which the vibration transmission properties of a bolt connection were tested when the bolt was tight and loose, respectively. The results proved that the approach is effective in identifying nonlinear vibration frequency responses.