Nonlinear harmonic and parametric resonances of a roller chain stretched horizontally

Chain has large weight and high tension stifness; these distinctive features are different from those of string. This paper describes the nonlinear harmonic and parametric resonances of a roller chain stretched horizontally, which is regarded as a system with many degrees of freedom, when the elongation of the chain during vibration is taken into account. The resonance treated in this report is one of the resonances excited by combined forcing and parametric excitations in which the ratio of the frequency of the forced lateral displacement acting at the left end to that of the tension fluctuation is 1: 2. The vibration characteristics are computed for three kinds of chain and are compared with the ones obtained from the experiments. In particular, the effect of the chain weight upon the resulting vibrations is considered. Good agreement between experimental and analytical results is confirmed.