Abstract
This paper describes the analysis of dynamic characteristics and prediction of the stiffness for the joint between structural members. In the process of deriving the governing equations, the stiffness values responsible for the moment and shear force were modelled by using linear and torsional springs in the middle of a clamped-clamped beam. The sensitivities of the natural frequency and modal assurance criterion were investigated as a function of the dimensionless linear and torsional spring stiffness. The reliability of the predictions for the linear and torsional stiffness values was verified by the inverse computations of the stiffness matrix. The predictive and exact theoretical stiffness values were compared for the stiffness element in the finite element formulation, and their results show an excellent correlation. It is strongly anticipated that although the proposed methodology is currently limited to the analytical utilization, it will provide a useful tool to estimate unknown joint stiffness values based on the experimental natural frequency and mode shape.