Steady-State Response Analysis of Elastically Point-Supported Composite Rectangular Plates

This paper presents an analytical method for determining the steady-state response of a laminated composite fectangular plate resting on some elastic point supports. The bending rigidities are assumed to be complex quantities considering material damping. The Ritz approach is used to yield a governing equation of motion for the plate, and the steady-state response solution to a sinusoidally varying point force is derived. The method is applied to a laminated square plate elastically supported at four points symmetrically located at the corners or on the diagonals. The mechanical impedance of the plate is calculated for three types of FRP (fiber-reinforced plastic) materials, and the effects of the point supports and the lamination properties upon the response characteristics are studied.