Pilani, 04th November 2026: An international research team, including Prof. Hemant Sharma, Assistant Professor from Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS) Pilani, has demonstrated a new approach to vibration protection based on the concept of mechanical intelligence.
The work addresses a broader question: Can adaptive intelligence be embodied directly within a mechanical structure?
The findings of this research have been published in the prestigious International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, in a paper co-authored by researchers from India, South Korea, and China, representing BITS Pilani, Seoul National University, the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
Vibration is a persistent challenge in machines, vehicles, precision equipment and lightweight structures. Excessive vibration can reduce accuracy, accelerate wear and, in some cases, damage critical components. Traditional passive vibration isolators are generally designed for fixed operating conditions. Although advanced adaptive systems can respond to changing vibration conditions, they often rely on sensors, controllers, actuators and external power, making the overall system more complex.
In this research, the team developed and experimentally demonstrated a structure that can shift between different stable states when vibration conditions become unfavorable. The concept was developed through computational design and optimization, and validated through sophisticated experimental analysis and physical demonstrations carried out in Prof. Jinkyu Yang’s laboratory at Seoul National University, which played a central role in establishing its practical feasibility.
Dr. Hemant Sharma contributed in the research through conceptualisation, supervision and critical review and refinement of the manuscript. The work advances the broader vision of self-adaptive, mechanically intelligent structures that could enable simpler, more resilient, and energy-efficient vibration protection for transportation, precision equipment, machinery, and other engineering systems.
When vibration becomes unfavourable and builds up near resonance, the structure's own motion and stored mechanical energy can trigger a transition from one state to the other. This transition changes the structure's effective stiffness and resonant behaviour, allowing it to move away from an undesirable vibration condition and reduce excessive vibration response, without external sensing, control or actuation.
The research team computationally designed and optimized the mechanical system, then built and tested a prototype through static and dynamic experiments. The tests confirmed that the structure could maintain two distinct states and switch between them automatically as vibration conditions changed, demonstrating adaptive behaviour built directly into the structure itself, without relying on sensors or electronic controls.
This self-adapting approach offers clear advantages over conventional sensor-based systems, including improved dependability, greater efficiency, and reduced maintenance needs, while making the overall system simpler, more durable, and more energy-efficient, with promising applications in manufacturing, transportation, and precision equipment.
