The displacements in an elastic half-space when a load moves along a beam lying on its surface

Abstract The motion, with constant velocity, of a normal load along an elastic beam lying on an elastic isotropic homogeneous half-space is considered. A method for the approximate calculation of the normal displacements of the surface of the half-space for subsonic velocities of motion is developed. An estimate is given of the expressions obtained and a comparison is made with existing results for the problem of the motion of a point load along a half-space.