Experimental investigation of isolated and simultaneous internal resonances in suspended cables

The near resonant response of suspended elastic cables driven by harmonic, planar excitation is investigated experimentally. Measurements of large amplitude cable motions confirm previous theoretical predictions of fundamental classes of internally-resonant responses. For particular magnitudes of equilibrium curvature, strong modal interactions arise through isolated (two-mode) or simultaneous (three-mode) internal resonances. Four qualitatively different periodic responses are observed: (1) pure planar response, (2) 2:1 internally resonant nonplanar response, (3) 1:1 internally resonant nonplanar response, and (4) simultaneous, 2:2:1 internally resonant nonplanar response. Quasiperiodic responses are also observed.