Formulation of Dynamic Vehicle-Bridge Interaction Problems

In this papers, a finite element formulation is proposed for dynamic analysis of vehicle-bridge interaction problems under realistic loading conditions. Although the formulation presented in this paper is based on the consideration of only a single traversing vehicle, it can be extended to include several different bridge configurations. The traversing vehicle and the vibrating bridge superstructure are considered as an integrated system. Hence, although material and geometric nonlinearities are excluded, this introduces nonlinearity into the problem. Various vehicle models, including those with suspension systems, are considered. Traveling speed of the vehicle can be varied. The finite element discretization of the bridge structure permits the inclusion of arbitrary geometrical configurations, and surface and boundary conditions. To obtain accurate solutions, time integration of the equation of vehicle-bridge motion is carried out by using the Newmark method in connection with a predictor-corrector algorithm.