Validation of a Design Method for the Simulation of the Mechanical Mobility of Marine Diesel Engine Seatings

Structure-borne noise generated by diesel engines on board ships is strictly related to the intrinsic dynamic characteristics of both diesel engine and engine supporting system. To keep the structure-borne noise at low levels, the selection of the most suitable structural configuration of the engine foundation is one of the main aims of the ship designers. Prediction and optimization of the engine foundations dynamics are based on the knowledge of the diesel engine seating mobility levels. This can be achieved by FEA simulations once they have been properly calibrated on experimental data. In the paper a procedure is outlined to perform reliable predictions of the engine seating mobility levels based on measurements taken on the real scale structures.