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Experimental and numerical analysis of damping properties of tennis racquets

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Abstract

The literature, both scientific and commercial, already reports a large number of papers dealing with the dynamic properties of sports racquets and their influence on possible injuries caused to athletes. In particular, tennis players can suffer for the so called “tennis elbow” which is believed to depend also on the damping properties of racquets. In order to reduce injuries, to provide a better playing feeling, and to increase performances, producers of tennis equipment are keen to present ameliorations to their products, sometimes with great commercial echo. The same companies, together with a number of smaller firms, also sell minor components (grip, over-grip, strings dampers and so on) which should increase damping and limit annoying vibrations. The interest on the subject is also documented by the number of patents, easily acquired on the web. In this paper, the effects on the dynamic properties introduced by the granular damping technology and by a silicone ring are investigated. A finite element model of a generic racquet has been defined to study the effects of a silicone ring placed just above the end of the handle, i.e., at the base of the throat, and also to define the static stiffness of the structure. This stiffness and the forces computed by a discrete element model, aimed at quantifying the interactions among granules contained in two small boxes fixed to the racquet, have been introduced in a simplified single degree of freedom system to explore the effectiveness of the granular solution. Numerical conclusions are confirmed by experimental results, obtained by analysing (both in time and frequency domains) the free response of a racquet repeatedly impacted by tennis balls.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Mr. Fabio Bosello for the incitement at first studying the subject and for his valuable help when performing the experimental tests.

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  1. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Turin, Italy

    Alessandro Fasana, Pieralfonso Montanaro, Stefano Simone & Luca Viale

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  1. Alessandro Fasana
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  2. Pieralfonso Montanaro
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  3. Stefano Simone
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  4. Luca Viale
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Correspondence to Luca Viale.

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Fasana, A., Montanaro, P., Simone, S. et al. Experimental and numerical analysis of damping properties of tennis racquets. Meccanica 57, 2821–2833 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11012-022-01601-w

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