Applications of time-frequency analysis to structures with internal resonance

Time-frequency analysis is an approach to characterizing the nature of signals whose frequency content changes over time. Although the primary applications of this field have, to date, been in the area of communications and signal analysis, it is becoming known in the field of structural dynamics. This paper explores the application of two straightforward time-frequency techniques to several structures that exhibit internal resonance. In particular, the systems analyzed exhibit simple modal interactions and, in one case, a transition to chaos. While other methods exist for analysis of these types of behaviors, larger systems with more complex resonances maybe better analyzed with time-frequency techniques.