Finite element dynamic response analysis of rocket-launcher system at lift-off

Abstract

A method is proposed to analyze dynamic response of a rocket-launcher system at lift-off. In this paper, rocket-launcher system is modeled as finite element Bernoulli-Euler beams connected with two slippers which are modeled as linear springs. A beam element with a moving spring is devised to represent the rocket-launcher interaction. Coupled equations of motion with time-varying coefficients are derived and solved by using direct method such as the Wilson θ method to calculate the dynamic response of the system. To verify the validity of this method, dynamic response is calculated by using the data of M-3 S rocket-launcher system. Two rocket models, rigid-body and elastic-body models, are used in this calculation. The numerical results obtained from two models are compared and discussed.