Literature survey of contact dynamics modelling

Impact is a complex phenomenon that occurs when two or more bodies undergo a collision. This phenomenon is important in many different areas––machine design, robotics, multi-body analysis are just a few examples. The purpose of this manuscript is to provide an overview of the state of the art on impact and contact modelling methodologies, taking into account their different aspects, specifically, the energy loss, the influence of the friction model, solution approaches, the multi-contact problem and the experimental verification. The paper is intended to provide a review of results presented in literature and some additional insights into existing models, their interrelationship and the use of these models for impact/contact scenarios encountered in space robotic applications.