Statistical Energy Analysis has become extremely popular over the last decade in the transportation industry. As a prediction tool, it offers appealing advantages such as, its wide frequency range and short computational time, which conventional methods do not offer.
Prediction of the vibrational response of dynamical systems, whether it is by means of analytical methods, numerical methods or, as in our case, by statistical methods, requires in particular the damping characteristics of the structure’s components.
This work proposes a comparison study of the three techniques widely used to determine the loss factors of different complex structures ranging form simple flat plates to ribbed panels and sandwich composite panels in different mounting configurations. The studied structures are classically met in cars, aircraft and trains. They span both low and high damping configurations. The paper discusses the advantages and drawbacks of each method in the context of SEA modeling of complex structures.