Study of the Mechanism of Accessory Drive Belt Noise 2009-01-0186

The mechanism of noise production in engine accessory drive belts was discussed. Applying geometric considerations to the transversal vibration of the belt, which is one cause of belt noise, the research showed that vibration of the belt is affected by fluctuations in the rotational speed of the crankshaft, and that the amplitude of the vibrations fluctuates cyclically. The cycle of this amplitude fluctuation is synchronous with engine speed, and for a 3-cylinder gasoline engine, its frequency is the (1.5*n)^th engine rotation order. The spectrum pattern of belt vibration therefore shows components of the natural frequency±(1.5*n)^th orders. The research demonstrated that at engine speeds at which the natural frequency±(1.5*n)^th orders and the (1.5*n)^th order frequencies, the engine excitation orders, are identical, multiple engine orders excite resonance in the belt, producing a high degree of belt vibration.