Dynamic and stability analysis of the linear guide with time-varying, piecewise-nonlinear stiffness by multi-term incremental harmonic balance method

The dynamic behaviors and stability of the linear guide considering contact actions are studied by multi-term incremental harmonic balance method (IHBM). Based on fully considering the parameters of the linear guide, a static model is developed and the contact stiffness is calculated according to Hertz contact theory. A generalized time-varying and piecewise-nonlinear dynamic model of the linear guide is formulated to perform an accurate investigation on its dynamic behaviors and stability. The numerical simulation is used to confirm the feasibility of the approach. The effects of excitation force and mean load on the system are analyzed in low-order nonlinearity. Multi-term IHBM and numerical simulation are employed to the effect of high-order nonlinearity and show the transition to chaos. Additionally, the effects of preload, initial contact angle, the number and diameter of balls are discussed.