Vibration analysis of the continuous beam subjected to a moving mass

The dynamic behavior of the multi-span continuous beam traversed by a moving mass at a constant velocity is investigated, in which it is assumed that each span of the continuous beam obeys uniform Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. The solution to this system is simply obtained by using both eigenfunction expansion or the modal analysis method and the direct integration method in combination. The effects of the inertia and the moving velocity of the load on the dynamic response of the continuous beam are evaluated for three kinds of continuous beams having uniform span length. (C) 2000 Academic Press.