Modal testing methodology of a missile fin structure
Srikanth Bashetty, Likhitha Chodisetti
Modal testing is a form of vibration testing of an object whereby the natural frequencies, modal masses, modal damping ratios and mode shapes of the object under test are determined. A modal test consists of an acquisition phase and an analysis phase. The complete process is often referred to as a Modal Analysis or Experimental Modal Analysis. There are several ways to do modal testing but impact hammer testing and shaker (vibration tester) testing are commonplace. Impact hammer testing is ideal for small light weight structures; however as the size of the structure increases issues can occur due to a poor signal to noise ratio. In this project, we are testing a fin of a missile with impact hammer testing.