NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL VERIFICATION OF A NEW MODEL FOR FATIGUE LIFE

— A new model for fatigue life prediction has been presented[1]. The model is based on Palmgren-Miner's rule in combination with a level crossing analysis. Here an effort is made to verify the model, numerically and experimentally. Data from the literature and experimental data generated by us have been compared with fatigue life predictions made with the new model. The data have also been compared with traditional fatigue life estimations based on the rain flow count method. The fatigue lives predicted by the new model often agree better with actual lives than predictions made with the RFC-method. This is especially pronounced when the loading sequence is very irregular, i.e. when the sequence contains many small cycles superimposed on large cycles. The new method is both fast and simple to use.