Digital Signal Processing
Mechanical Dynamics DSP Analyzer
Version 6.5
Professional Shock & Vibration Analysis Software
Beyond Peak Gs — Into Real-World Reliability
The Problem We Solve
Every year, billions of dollars in products are damaged during shipping, handling, and operation due to shock and vibration. Yet most engineers still rely on a single metric — peak acceleration (g) — to predict whether their products will survive.
This approach fails. Here’s why:
• A 1,000g shock lasting 0.1 ms may cause zero damage
• A 50g shock lasting 20 ms may cause catastrophic failure
• The same peak g can produce completely different outcomes depending on pulse shape, duration, and rise time
“We’ve seen products pass 100g shock testing in the lab, then fail at 30g in the field.
The peak g number told us nothing about the actual failure mechanism.”
— Common experience in product development
Our Solution: The 5-Parameter Fragility Framework
The Mechanical Dynamics DSP Analyzer implements a comprehensive 5-parameter fragility assessment that considers how products actually fail — not just how hard they are hit.
Parameter
Failure Mode → What It Catches
Peak Acceleration
Brittle fracture → Glass breakage, ceramic cracking, weld failures
Velocity Change (ΔV)
Energy absorption → Metal bending, plastic deformation, cushion bottoming
Pseudo-Velocity SRS
Resonant stress → PCB failures, solder joint cracks, cantilever breaks
Peak Jerk
Rate sensitivity → Adhesive failures, potting compound cracks, seal damage
Pulse Duration
Context → Distinguishes impacts from quasi-static loads
By analyzing all five parameters together, MDSP helps you understand not just if something might fail, but how and why — enabling you to design better solutions and write more representative test specifications.
What MDSP v6.5 Does
Signal Analysis Pipeline
✓ Import data from any accelerometer (CSV, Excel, text files)
✓ Clean and filter with industry-standard CFC filters (SAE J211 / ISO 6487)
✓ Detect impacts automatically with adaptive burst detection (MAD and quantile modes)
✓ Calculate statistics including RMS, peak, kurtosis, crest factor, zero crossing rate
✓ Signal Intelligence auto-classifies signals as shock, random vibration, or sine
Frequency Domain Analysis
✓ FFT and PSD with configurable Welch parameters and automated guidance
✓ Spectrogram and Waterfall 3D for time–frequency visualization
✓ 35 industry PSD specifications built-in across 11 categories (MIL-STD, NASA, ISTA, IEC, Aerospace, Transportation)
✓ Transmissibility analysis for isolation system evaluation with coherence
✓ PSD Modeler fit breakpoint specifications with Best Fit or Conservative Envelope modes
✓ Time-Varying Frequency & Amplitude Analysis (TVFA) for non-stationary environments
Shock Response Spectrum (SRS)
✓ Three SRS forms: Maximax, Primary, and Residual
✓ Pseudo-velocity SRS for energy-based, stress-proportional severity assessment
✓ Gaberson 4-Panel SRS acceleration time history, PV SRS, jerk, and acceleration SRS in one view
✓ Configurable damping and frequency range
Jerk Analysis
✓ Peak jerk calculation from cubic polynomial curve fit with quality assessment
✓ Material risk thresholds: glass (180,000 g/s), ceramics (100,000 g/s), PCB electronics (50,000 g/s)
✓ Three-panel display: acceleration, jerk, and curve fit quality
Fatigue & Fragility
✓ Rainflow cycle counting per ASTM E1049-85
✓ Fatigue Damage Spectrum (FDS) with configurable b-exponent (metals, solder, ceramics)
✓ Velocity Change for energy transfer and cushion analysis
✓ 5-Parameter Fragility Assessment with severity band classification (Negligible through Critical)
✓ Shock Metrics Dashboard all key parameters at a glance
Reporting and Export
✓ Professional PDF reports with all analysis results and embedded plots
✓ PSD breakpoint export for Abaqus *PSD DEFINITION or shaker table controller input
✓ Signal Library session management with version tracking
✓ Learning Center 11+ built-in tutorials from DSP fundamentals to advanced fragility
Two Interfaces — One Powerful Engine
⚡ Guided Tour (Intent Interface)
🔧 Comprehensive GUI
Structured step-by-step workflow through THE POKE → THE SYSTEM → THE RESPONSE. Ideal for learning, training, and focused single-session analysis.
Full-featured professional interface with all functions accessible from three tabs (Basic, Advanced, Analysis). Preferred by experienced users for rapid multi-analysis sessions.
Both interfaces share the same analytical engine. Switch between them at any time from within the application.
Who Benefits from MDSP v6.5
Packaging Engineers
Your Challenge: Design packaging that protects products through shipping and handling without over-engineering (costly) or under-engineering (failures).
✓ Compare drop test data to ISTA, ASTM, and custom specifications
✓ Analyze cushion curve data to optimize material selection
✓ Velocity change analysis to predict cushion bottoming
✓ Correlate field failures to specific shock parameters using the 5-parameter framework
Test Engineers
Your Challenge: Validate that products meet specifications and understand why failures occur.
✓ CFC filtering compliant with SAE J211 and ISO 6487
✓ SRS analysis to verify shock table performance
✓ PSD Modeler to build shaker table specifications from field measurements
✓ Fatigue equivalence calculation for test duration optimization
✓ Comprehensive statistics for pass/fail determination
Product Design Engineers
Your Challenge: Design products that survive real-world environments, not just lab tests.
✓ 5-parameter fragility identifies which failure modes your design is exposed to
✓ Transmissibility analysis to design effective isolation mounts
✓ Gaberson 4-Panel SRS for comprehensive shock energy assessment
✓ Jerk thresholds for glass, ceramic capacitors, and PCB electronics
Reliability Engineers
Your Challenge: Predict field reliability and investigate failures when they occur.
✓ Rainflow cycle counting for cumulative fatigue life estimation
✓ FDS comparison: field environment vs. qualification test spectrum
✓ Identify environmental conditions causing premature failures
✓ Dual-channel transmissibility and coherence analysis
FEA / CAE Engineers
Your Challenge: Close the loop between structural simulation and signal-based fragility assessment.
✓ Import Abaqus Explicit acceleration history (FREQUENCY=1 workflow supported)
✓ Apply the same 5-parameter fragility framework to simulation data
✓ Export PSD breakpoints directly for Abaqus *PSD DEFINITION input
✓ Simulation-to-physical-test correlation with acceptance criteria
Quality Engineers
Your Challenge: Ensure consistent test execution and meaningful specifications.
✓ 35 built-in industry PSD specifications across 11 categories for reference
✓ Standardized analysis methods with documented algorithms
✓ PDF report export for documentation and audit trails
✓ Repeatable analysis workflows with session save/restore
Industries We Serve
Industry
Typical Applications
Consumer Electronics
Drop testing, shipping simulation, display glass fragility, wearable device validation
Automotive
Crash data analysis, road load simulation, component qualification, NVH
Aerospace & Defense
MIL-STD-810 testing, pyrotechnic shock, launch vibration, avionics qualification
Medical Devices
Transport validation, surgical instrument robustness, IEC 60068 compliance
Industrial Equipment
Machinery vibration, installation shock, field measurements, predictive maintenance
Packaging & Logistics
ISTA testing, damage-free shipping, cushion design, environmental profiling
Simulation / CAE
Abaqus Explicit post-processing, FEA-to-fragility correlation, PSD spec development
Research & Academia
Teaching dynamics, student projects, DSP fundamentals, fragility research
Documentation Library
MDSP v6.5 includes seven professionally formatted reference documents covering every workflow and user role:
Document
Content
User Manual (v6.5)
Complete software reference — 13 chapters, all functions, troubleshooting
Drop Test Walkthrough
6-foot concrete drop: import, clean, filter, SRS, Gaberson, jerk, fragility
Random Vibration Walkthrough
Dual-channel field data: PSD, transmissibility, coherence, FDS comparison
Abaqus Simulation Walkthrough
FREQUENCY=1 workflow, post-processing, fragility, design iteration
THE POKE Guided Tour
Intent interface button-by-button for new users and trainers
PSD Fitted Model Walkthrough
Field data to shaker spec or Abaqus *PSD DEFINITION input
Document Library Guide
Which document to use, organized by role and task
Educational Value
MDSP is not just a tool — it is a learning platform. The built-in Learning Center includes 11+ comprehensive tutorials covering:
• DSP fundamentals: FFT, windowing, spectral leakage
• Shock analysis: SRS theory, damage potential assessment
• Jerk analysis: brittle material thresholds and failure physics
• SDOF dynamics: natural frequency, damping, transmissibility
• PSD specification development: from measurement to shaker table spec
• Fatigue damage spectrum: Miner’s Rule, b-exponent selection
• Practical case studies: real-world field measurement examples
• Common mistakes: pitfalls to avoid in shock and vibration analysis
“Engineering is fundamentally about poking systems to learn their nature.
MDSP gives you the tools to understand what happens when you poke —
and what it means for your product’s survival.”
What’s New in v6.5
Feature
Description
Signal Generator
Total Record Duration field for shock pulses — control the full time record (pre-pulse + pulse + post-pulse) for adequate SRS and ring-down capture
PSD Modeler
Interactive breakpoint fitting with Best Fit (for simulation) and Conservative Envelope (for shaker table specs) modes. Export directly for Abaqus or controller input.
TVFA Improvements
Intelligent pre-check redirects short shock signals to appropriate analyses with specific recommendations and thresholds
Startup Font
10pt Courier New applied automatically on launch — no manual Apply step required
PDF Export
Two bugs resolved: matplotlib scope and HexColor formatting. PDF export is now fully reliable in both GUI and standalone .exe
Build System
PyInstaller spec files updated with full ReportLab bundle. Both Intent and Full GUI builds at v6.5
Documentation
Seven new professional reference documents covering every workflow and audience
Why Choose MDSP v6.5
✓ No license fees — standalone software you own
✓ No subscriptions — one-time acquisition, lifetime use
✓ No internet required — works completely offline
✓ Standalone .exe — no Python installation needed at deployment
✓ 35 PSD specifications built-in — across 11 industry categories
✓ Dual interface — guided tour for learning, comprehensive GUI for production
✓ Abaqus integration — simulation-to-fragility pipeline included
✓ Seven professional documents — complete reference library included
✓ Professional support — from an engineer who uses it daily
Get Started Today
Ready to move beyond peak g’s and into real-world reliability analysis?
Name
Joseph P. McFadden Sr.
Website
Developed with Claude AI (Anthropic) • © 2025-2026 Joseph P. McFadden Sr. All Rights Reserved.
