Dynamic interaction of vehicles moving on uniform bridges

Abstract

The dynamic interaction problem of moving vehicles on uniform suspension bridges is studied. The resulting variable moving loads acting on the bridge are of great practical importance to both bridge and automotive engineers. The vehicle, including the occupants, is modelled as a planar half-car with six degrees of freedom, and the bridge is assumed to obey the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory with arbitrary conventional boundary conditions. However, the numerical simulations presented here are for the case of a vehicle travelling at a constant speed on a bridge with simply supported end conditions. Owing to the continuously moving location of the loads on the bridge, the governing differential equations will have time-varying coefficients and hence become rather complicated. The relationship between the bridge vibration characteristics and the vehicle speed is established, resulting in a search for a particular speed that determines the maximum values of dynamic deflection and the bending moment of the bridge.