Calculating Undamped Natural Frequency of a Cantilever Beam

AI Thread Summary
The discussion focuses on calculating the undamped natural frequency of a cantilever beam with specific parameters, including mass and lengths of various components. The user reports an experimental undamped frequency of 2.74 Hz but encounters issues calculating the moment of inertia, leading to an incorrect natural frequency of 7.0806 rad/s. They express uncertainty about their moment of inertia formula, which combines terms for a beam and additional mass. The user seeks guidance on correcting their calculations to align with the experimental results. Clarification on the moment of inertia calculation is essential for accurate frequency determination.
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Homework Statement


Hi.

I'm trying to work out the undamped natural frequency of a cantilever beam. The setup of the system is shown in the image below.

[URL]http://www.flickr.com/photos/56901717@N03/5249378659/[/URL]

Data:(all lengths measured from the hinge on the left of the beam)
Beam: m=1.946 kg, L=L1=815mm
Spring: m=0.134 kg, at length L3=815mm
Motor block: m=5.250 kg at L4=264mm

4 blocks of 50g mounted on motor at e=32mm from centre of rotation.
k=430 N/m

Homework Equations



The Attempt at a Solution



We began by finding the experimental undamped frequency from our plot from the oscilloscope.

F=1/T this gave a result of 2.74Hz = 0.437 rad/s

I then use the summation of moments about the hinge (say point O) to find an equation for natural frequency:

[URL]http://www.flickr.com/photos/56901717@N03/5250100964/in/photostream/[/URL]

My problem comes when calculating moment of inertia, Io:

I have tried using the equation:

Io = (mL^2)/12 + mL^2

However I don't think this is right as I get
omega = 7.0806 which is much much higher than my initial value.

Could someone please indicate where I am going wrong so I can have another attempt at this!

Thanks!
 
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I couldn't use the in built formula editor too well so a knocked up the formula in word and saved it as an image. I think you may just have to right click on the image and copy the URL to see them!

Thanks for your help
 
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