sensors

Editorial
Advanced Vibration-Based Fault Diagnosis and Vibration
Control Methods
Xiaohua Song 1 , Jing Liu 2, * and Min Xia 3

1 School of Electronic Information Engineering, Xi’an Technological University, Xi’an 710021, China;
[email protected]
2 School of Marine Science and Technology, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an 710072, China
3 Department of Engineering, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK; [email protected]
* Correspondence: [email protected] or [email protected]

1. Introduction
Fault diagnosis and vibration control are the tracking of any aspect of an industry
mechanical components’ performance using reliably measured data and analytical simula-
tions in conjunction with the heuristic experience, so that the current and expected future
performance of the machine for at least the most critical limit events can be described in
a proactive manner. Advanced intelligent fault diagnosis methods, together with abun-
dant measurement and simulation information, can greatly improve the performances of
various industry mechanical systems. Although a lot of works have been introduced to
develop methods for determining the working status of different machines using different
detection techniques [1], it is still challenging to accurately determine the time-varying
working status, because practical working conditions are extremely complex and stochas-
tic [2]. Classical statistical features obtained from the raw vibration signal fail to hold
the understanding and steadiness required for fault detection, exclusively in multifaceted
noisy situations [3]. The proper application and integration of big data analytics, signal
processing methods, measurement systems, fast computing, and machine learning can lead
to the development of accurate diagnosis and prognosis methods for mechanical systems
in industry applications. Moreover, advanced vibration control methods can be helpful for
preventing the failures of mechanical components.
Despite a lot of advancement in the field of fault diagnosis and vibration control
Citation: Song, X.; Liu, J.; Xia, M. methods, the advanced industry faces the following challenges while developing accurate
Advanced Vibration-Based Fault fault diagnosis solutions. There are limited labelled data about machine health. The
Diagnosis and Vibration Control
developed methods work satisfactorily on the machines upon which training is performed.
Methods. Sensors 2023, 23, 7704.
However, when working conditions are introduced, such as complex loading and operating
https://doi.org/10.3390/s23187704
speed conditions, theoretical methods have a low accuracy. The most important issue is
Received: 4 August 2023 that the industrial environment does not allow for many investigations.
Revised: 11 August 2023 In order to rapidly report and spread the latest advancements in the science of fault
Accepted: 16 August 2023 diagnosis, including new discoveries and valuable applied investigations from all over the
Published: 6 September 2023 world, this Special Issue’s main aim is to gather state-of-the-art research and review articles
into all aspects of theoretical and applied investigations about the latest developments
in new sensor technologies and diagnosis methods for the detection of faults. The topics
include vibration-based fault diagnosis; new sensor technologies; vibration control methods;
Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.
the failure mechanism of the faults in various mechanical systems; the vibro-acoustic
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
diagnosis of machinery; and case studies and industrial applications.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
2. Overview of the Contributions
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
This Special Issue on “Advanced Vibration-Based Fault Diagnosis and Vibration Con-
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ trol Methods” includes twelve papers ranging across different methods used in the electrical
4.0/). and mechanical industries’ systems. The papers include a good literature review of the

Sensors 2023, 23, 7704. https://doi.org/10.3390/s23187704 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sensors

Sensors 2023, 23, 7704 2 of 6

current new works on the verification of mechanical properties identification based on the
impulse excitation technique and mobile device measurements [4], the method for bearing
fault diagnosis under variable speeds based on envelope spectrum fault characteristic fre-
quency band identification [5], the interface design of head-worn display applications for
condition monitoring in aviation [6], color recurrence plots for bearing fault diagnoses [7],
the failure mode detection and validation of a shaft-bearing system with common sen-
sors [8], the strain response and buckling behavior of composite cylindrical shells subjected
to external pressure with one end fixed and the other free of boundary conditions [9], the
smartphone-based and data-driven superstructure state prediction method for highway
bridges in service [10], the optimal control algorithm for stochastic systems with parameter
drift [11], the nonlinear vibration control experimental system design of a flexible arm
using interactive actuations from shape memory alloy [12], the design of an active vibration
isolation controller with a disturbance observer-based linear quadratic regulator for optical
reference cavities [13], the applicability of touchscreens in manned/unmanned aerial vehi-
cle cooperative missions [14], and the engineering frequency domain analysis and vibration
suppression of flexible aircraft based on an active disturbance rejection controller [15].
The Editorial paper is a brief summary of the content of the 12 papers published in the
Sensors Special Issue “Advanced Vibration-Based Fault Diagnosis and Vibration Control
Methods”. A brief summary of the content associated with each of the chosen papers
belonging to the Special Issue is given as follows:
Advanced, vibration-based fault diagnosis and vibration control methods for mechan-
ical and electrical systems should be useful for condition monitoring and vibration control
designs. Many works have been reported to present various studies on effective detection
and vibration control.
The Impulse Excitation Technique (IET) is a useful testing method for calculating or
evaluating some material properties. However, it is a requirement for specialized sensor
and acquisition systems and well-trained engineers to prepare the setup and analyze the
results. Thus, Scislo [4] evaluated the possibility of a low-cost solution in the form of a
mobile device microphone as a way of obtaining the data. By using Fast Fourier Transform,
it allows frequency response graphs to be obtained and uses the IET method procedure to
calculate the mechanical properties of samples. Moreover, this method does not require
specific knowledge of sensing technology, signal treatment, or data analysis. It can be
performed by any assigned employee, who can receive the quality check information
immediately on-site. The presented procedure also allows for data collection and transfer
to the cloud for future reference and additional information extraction.
The vibration signals of rolling element bearings with variable speeds have nonstation-
ary characteristics. Order tracking and time–frequency analysis are two widely methods
for the fault diagnosis of these rolling element bearings with variable speeds. However,
the order tracking method could be influenced by close-order harmonic interference and
resampling errors; moreover, the accuracy of the time–frequency analysis method is mainly
limited by ridge extraction algorithms and time–frequency resolutions. To address this
problem, Pei et al. [5] proposed a method based on envelope spectrum fault characteristic
frequency band identification. In this method, the envelope spectrum of the fault vibration
signals of the bearings under variable speeds are analyzed, and the fault characteristic
frequency band is introduced as a new and effective representation of faults. The fault
templates according to the fault characteristic frequency band are constructed as a reference
for the fault identification. By using the correlation coefficients between the envelope
spectrum and the fault templates in the extended fault characteristic frequency band, the
bearing fault can be diagnosed automatically according to the preset correlation coefficient
criterion. Some experimental results were also used to indicate the diagnostic accuracy of
the proposed method.
As a timely condition-monitoring method, head-worn displays are being increasingly
used in aviation. However, the interface design characteristics that mainly affect head-
worn display applications have not been fully investigated. Zhang et al. [6] examined the
Sensors 2023, 23, 7704 3 of 6

effects of several important interface design characteristics, such as the distance between
calibration lines and the layouts of horizontal and vertical scale belts, on the user preferences
and task performances of different head-worn or head-up displays. Their results showed
that the participants with head-worn displays performed better than those with head-up
displays. The layouts of horizontal and vertical scale belts have a great influence on the task
performance and preferences of users. It seems that the users generally preferred interface
design characteristics that could yield an optimal performance. These results may facilitate
the optimal design of usable head-worn-display technology.
If an early bearing fault is detected, the preventive maintenance of rotating equipment
can sustain the high up-time. However, early fault detection is not easily conducted
because it is difficult to implement non-intrusive inspections for heavy machinery. As one
useful, non-intrusive inspection, machine learning algorithms based on the vibration data
from the machine can be helpful. In recent years, machine learning algorithms have been
successively used for the early fault detection of different rotational bearings. Petrauskiene
et al. [7] presented a fault diagnosis method based on the image classification of different
fault patterns for bearings. They used a method of color recurrence plots by using the
nonlinear embedding of vibration signals in the delay coordinate space with variable time
lags for the feature extraction of the image classification. The database of extracted features
of the vibration signals of bearings in the form of color recurrence plots is built to perform
deep-learning-based image classification. They used some computational experiments
and test data from the Case Western Reserve University to validate the accuracy of the
fault classification.
Failure mode diagnosis is the first step in the life prediction of bearings, which should
be helpful for protecting the rotors in machinery. Kuo et al. [8] conducted a vibration
test, conversion, and analysis of the signals, using characteristic extraction and machine
learning with neural networks to obtain the failure mode diagnosis of a rotor-bearing
system. In their method, time domain signals were converted into frequency domain
signals to analyze the dominant frequency between different sensors. They developed two
characteristic extraction methods based on a principal components analysis (PCA) and
wavelet packet decomposition (WPD) for an optimization analysis, which were named
PCA-WPD and WPD-PCA. They used those two methods to extract the features, which
were defined as inputs to long short-term memory networks for classification and training,
in order to monitor the bearing status, including the healthy, unbalanced, misaligned, and
impact loads.
As a major failure type for thin-walled structures, buckling could be caused by external
hydrostatic pressure. Traditional metal materials, including aluminum alloy, titanium alloy,
and high-strength steel, are always used to produce submersible pressure shell structures.
Due to its limited space and weight, the submarine structure needs materials with a high
mechanical performance that are lightweight. Because fiber composite materials have a
high stiffness and strength, shells made of fiber composite materials are widely used for
external hydrostatic pressure. Moreover, composite materials can improve the structures’
corrosion resistance. Shen et al. [9] used the finite element method to study the buckling
of a filament-wound composite cylindrical shell under external pressure. The buckling
behavior and pressure under external hydrostatic pressure were predicted. The buckling
modes from the simulations and experiments were compared. It seemed that the shell’s
axial stiffness was larger than the circumferential stiffness. The strains of the fixed-end
and free-end metal control sleeves were analyzed too. It was found that the boundary
conditions had a significant influence on the strain response of the control sleeves.
The traffic density and vehicle loads on highways increase with increments in trans-
portation capacity. This may mean that a number of current highway bridges cannot meet
the needs of transportation. Moreover, the deterioration of a lot of bridges is very promi-
nent. Thus, an accurate prediction of the performance of highway bridge superstructures
is critical for their effective maintenance, because superstructures, including their decks,
are an important budget factor for transportation agencies. The safety status prediction
Sensors 2023, 23, 7704 4 of 6

and real-time health monitoring of current bridge structures are very useful for small-
and medium-span bridge structures. Duan et al. [10] presented a method based on the
survival analysis theory to evaluate the service performance of bridge superstructures. The
method can assist in the daily repair and maintenance of small and medium bridges. They
investigated the influences of the upper general structure, upper load-bearing structure,
deck paving, bearings, frequency ratio, and expansion joints on the deterioration of bridge
superstructures. It was found that the first-order vibration frequency of the bridge could
be identified by the built-in acceleration sensor of a mobile phone. However, the low
sensitivity and high output noise may cause an inaccurate diagnosis of the higher-order
frequencies. The upper general structure, upper load-bearing members, frequency ratio,
deck pavement, and bearing are related to changes in the technical condition level of
bridge superstructures.
When a component exceeds its working life or failure, changes in the parameter drift
in a system should be caused, which could be affected by the physical properties of the
components’ materials, operating environment, and working principle. For the gyroscope
in a satellite, if its drift parameters are accurately detected at any time, the drift could
be obtained; then, related measures could be used to reduce accidents. Zhang et al. [11]
presented an optimal control method for a stochastic system with multiple inputs and
multiple outputs by considering the observation noise, external disturbance, and mixed
parameter drift. The method can identify and track the drift parameters in a finite time.
It can also drive a system to move towards the desired trajectory. The innovation and
weight factors were used to produce the dual control algorithm. In this strategy, the
analytic solution for the control law could be received. Their algorithm can obtain a better
compromise between estimation and optimization. The effectiveness of the algorithm was
verified by numerical experiments in two different cases. They also used two different
numerical cases to validate their algorithm.
Flexible structures are used in multiple-joint human arms, robotics, aircraft vertical
tails, various kinds of manipulators, and gantry crane systems, etc. Due to their thin
structural characteristics, vibration problems in flexible arms can be easily caused, which
can greatly affect their operation accuracy. To reduce the flexible arm, smart materials
are widely applied. Li et al. [12] conducted a test system using smart materials with
hysteresis characteristics for nonlinear vibration control, which was an interactive actuator–
sensor–controller combination. They designed an integral compensator using an estimation
mechanism to reduce the displacements of the flexible arms. The vibration displacements
of the flexible arms with and without the integral compensators were compared. They
used some experimental cases to verify the proposed interactive actuation vibration control
method. It seems that the vibration displacements of the flexible arm could become almost
zero within less time and with a lower input power, compared to a traditional controller.
The microvibrations from solar sails, flywheels, and cryocoolers should affect space
payloads. The precision of scientific experiments could be limited by these microvibrations.
The suppression of microvibrations based on vibration isolation systems is important.
Qian et al. [13] proposed an active vibration isolation controller to reduce the effect of vibra-
tions on the variations in cavity length and improve the frequency stability of ultrastable
lasers. They designed a state-differential feedback controller with a linear quadratic regula-
tor. They also added a disturbance observer to predict the source noise. They conducted
some experiments based on an active vibration isolation system to validate the feasibility
and performance of the designed controller. It was found that the accelerations in the axis
directions could be suppressed in the low-frequency band within 200 Hz. It seems that the
comprehensive vibration may meet the requirements of an ultrastable laser.
Touchscreens’ suitability for human–computer interactions in manned/unmanned
aerial vehicle cooperative missions remains uncertain, especially when in time-sensitive
conditions with variations under difficult levels. To determine the feasibility of touchscreen
applications, Xue et al. [14] introduced a combination of performance and perceptual load
measures to divide errors into disposition, undetected, and miscalculation errors. This
Sensors 2023, 23, 7704 5 of 6

could explore specific error mechanisms. It could also set up typical manned/unmanned
aerial vehicle cooperative human–computer interaction tasks and the antecedent features
for potential factors. They conducted some experiments to validate the proposed method.
It was found that a higher task difficulty could cause a worse performance and a greater
perceived workload by the participants. Their results may support the possibility of using
touchscreens in manned/unmanned aerial vehicle cooperative missions.
In recent years, civil aviation companies have tended to adopt aircraft designs with
larger aspect ratios to reduce their induced drag, achieve speed breakthroughs, and reduce
fuel consumption. However, this design sacrifices the aircraft’s stability and produces
flight vibrations [1]. Compared to conventional designs, slender aircraft have greater
wave resistance and are subject to increased reaction forces. Therefore, as civil aircraft are
improved, more pronounced and sustained vibrations occur [2,3]. Corresponding to the
fatigue theory of engineering mechanics, elastic vibrations in flexible aircraft can reduce
their service life and may even damage their mechanical structures at certain specific
frequencies, leading to more severe effects [3].
Slender aircraft have greater wave resistance, which are also subject to increased
reaction forces. Thus, when civil aircraft are improved, more pronounced and sustained vi-
brations occur. Elastic vibrations in flexible aircraft can reduce their service life, which may
damage their mechanical structures at certain specific frequencies. Liu et al. [15] presented
an active disturbance rejection controller (ADRC) to suppress the aeroelastic vibrations of
a flexible aircraft. They built a vibration model considering the first elastic mode of the
flexible aircraft. This ADRC included a simple structure, which can provide better control
than the traditional proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control theory. Moreover, it was
easier to translate from theory to practice compared to other modern control theories. It
found that the ADRC suppressed aircraft elastic vibrations better than the PID controllers
and that the closed-loop system was robust in the face of dynamic parameters.

3. Conclusions, Outlook, and Acknowledgments

In this Special Issue, many outstanding world scientists provided different contribu-
tions from many industry fields. The guest editors think this Special Issue may provide
some academic contributions to advanced vibration-based fault diagnosis and vibration
control methods for industry applications.
The authors pay special appreciation to all 38 authors of the articles, as well as all
professional and diligent reviewers.

Author Contributions: Writing—original draft preparation, X.S.; writing—review and editing, J.L.;
review and editing, M.X.; All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research support by the Industrial Science and Technology Research Project of Shaanxi
Province (No. 2022GY-306); the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Contract No.
52175120 and 52211530085.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References
1. Liu, J.; Xu, Z.; Zhou, L.; Yu, W.; Shao, Y. A Statistical Feature Investigation of the Spalling Propagation Assessment for a Ball
Bearing. Mech. Mach. Theory 2019, 131, 336–350. [CrossRef]
2. Liu, J.; Li, X.; Xia, M. A Dynamic Model for the Planetary Bearings in a Double Planetary Gear Set. Mech. Syst. Signal Process.
2023, 194, 110257. [CrossRef]
3. Liu, J.; Ni, H.; Zhou, R.; Li, X.; Xing, Q.; Pan, G. A Simulation Analysis of Ball Bearing Lubrication Characteristics Considering
the Cage Clearance. J. Tribololy 2023, 145, 044301. [CrossRef]
4. Scislo, L. Verification of Mechanical Properties Identification Based on Impulse Excitation Technique and Mobile Device Measure-
ments. Sensors 2023, 23, 5639. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
5. Pei, D.; Yue, J.; Jiao, J. A Novel Method for Bearing Fault Diagnosis under Variable Speed Based on Envelope Spectrum Fault
Characteristic Frequency Band Identification. Sensors 2023, 23, 4338. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
6. Zhang, X.; Cheng, J.; Xue, H.; Chen, S. Interface Design of Head-Worn Display Application on Condition Monitoring in Aviation.
Sensors 2023, 23, 736. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
Sensors 2023, 23, 7704 6 of 6

7. Petrauskiene, V.; Pal, M.; Cao, M.; Wang, J.; Ragulskis, M. Color Recurrence Plots for Bearing Fault Diagnosis. Sensors 2022,
22, 8870. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
8. Kuo, C.-H.; Chuang, Y.-F.; Liang, S.-H. Failure Mode Detection and Validation of a Shaft-Bearing System with Common Sensors.
Sensors 2022, 22, 6167. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
9. Shen, K.-C.; Liu, X.-J.; Huang, Y.-H.; Pan, G. Strain Response and Buckling Behavior of Composite Cylindrical Shells Subjected
to External Pressure with One End Fixed and the Other under Free Boundary Conditions. Sensors 2022, 22, 6781. [CrossRef]
[PubMed]
10. Duan, J.; He, W.; Xu, S.; Zhong, Z.; Huang, L. Smartphone-Based and Data-Driven Superstructure State Prediction Method for
Highway Bridges in Service. Sensors 2022, 22, 5620. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
11. Zhang, X.; Gao, S.; Chen, C.; Huang, J. Optimal Control Algorithm for Stochastic Systems with Parameter Drift. Sensors 2023,
23, 5743. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
12. Li, X.; Jin, G.; Deng, M. Nonlinear Vibration Control Experimental System Design of a Flexible Arm Using Interactive Actuations
from Shape Memory Alloy. Sensors 2023, 23, 1133. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
13. Qian, Y.; Xie, Y.; Jia, J.; Zhang, L. Design of Active Vibration Isolation Controller with Disturbance Observer-Based Linear
Quadratic Regulator for Optical Reference Cavities. Sensors 2023, 23, 302. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
14. Xue, H.; Zhang, Q.; Zhang, X. Research on the Applicability of Touchscreens in Manned/Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Cooperative
Missions. Sensors 2022, 22, 8435. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
15. Liu, L.; Tian, B. Comprehensive Engineering Frequency Domain Analysis and Vibration Suppression of Flexible Aircraft Based on
Active Disturbance Rejection Controller. Sensors 2022, 22, 6207. [CrossRef] [PubMed]

Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual
author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to
people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.