Abstract
Gyroelastic body refers to a flexible structure with a distribution of stored angular momentum (called gyricity). In previous studies, it was assumed that each volume element of the structure possesses an infinitesimal spinning rotor so that the distribution of the gyricity is continuous. However, the momentum devices must be discretely distributed in engineering applications; therefore, this paper studies the gyroelastic body formed by directly mounting a set of variable speed control moment gyroscopes (CMGs) on the flexible structure. The detailed dynamics of the CMGs is incorporated to capture the interactions between the CMGs and the structure. The gyroelastic modes and pseudorigid modes are discussed based on the linearized mathematical model. The examples of a gyroelastic beam and a gyroelastic parabolic structure demonstrate several involved concepts and properties.
