Alberto Torin

In this chapter, a recently presented model for the simulation of collisions is explored. In the first section, the simple case of a lumped object colliding with a rigid barrier is presented as a test case, in order to introduce the notation and the basic concepts. The energy conservation properties of this new implementation are tested. A second section is devoted to the lumped/distributed collision, which models the interaction between a mallet and a plate or membrane. Finally, the distributed/distributed collisions between a string and a membrane will be discussed. The continuous time model is derived, together with an energy balance for the system. A finite difference scheme and its implementation is given. Particular attention is devoted to the stable termination of the string on the membrane. Simulation results are presented. The extension of the collision model to the distributed/distributed case and its numerical implementation is one of the contributions of this work.