Finite element analysis of vehicle-bridge interaction by an iterative method

In this paper, a new iterative method for solving vehicle-bridge interaction problems is proposed. Iterative methods have advantages over the non-iterative methods in that it is not necessary to update the system matrix for a given wheel location, and the method can be applied for a new type of car or bridge with few or no modifications. In the proposed method, the necessity of system matrices update is eliminated using the equivalent interaction force acting on the bridge, which is obtained iteratively. Ballast stiffness is included in the interaction forces and the geometric compatibility at the contact points are used as convergence criteria. The bridge is considered as an elastic Bernoulli-Euler beam with surface irregularity and ballast stiffness. The moving vehicle is modeled as a multi-axle mass-spring-damper system having many degrees of freedom depending on the number of axles. The pitching effect, which is the interaction effect between the rear and front wheels when a vehicle begins to enter or leave the bridge, is also considered in the formulation including extended ground boundaries having surface irregularity and ballast stiffness. The applicability of the proposed method is illustrated in the numerical studies.