Vibration Mitigation for an Underwater Circulating Towing System Using Simulated Annealing Particle Swarm Optimization

Practical testing of a novel underwater circulating towing experimental system has revealed that vibrations induce unstable vehicle operation, necessitating the implementation of vibration mitigation strategies. This paper first establishes a dynamic model of the system using mechanical system dynamics theory and analyzes its vibrational characteristics. The analysis shows that the third-order natural frequency closely aligns with the rotational frequency of the traction motor, thereby risking resonance and performance instability. To address this, shock absorbers are incorporated, and the spring stiffness of the tensioning device is adjusted. Using the vehicle’s vibration acceleration root mean square as the objective function, an annealed particle swarm optimization algorithm is employed to optimize parameters including the equivalent stiffness and damping coefficients of the shock absorbers, as well as those of the spring tensioning device, thus refining the vibration mitigation strategy. The results demonstrate a 6% increase in the initial third-order natural frequency, effectively avoiding resonance. Additionally, the average vibration displacement and acceleration are reduced by 45.8% and 20%, respectively, significantly enhancing operational stability. This research provides substantial theoretical support for improving system stability.