A GENERAL NONLINEAR STRUCTURAL MODEL OF A MULTIROD (MULTIBEAM) SYSTEM.1. THEORETICAL DERIVATIONS

A multirod (multibeam) system is a structural system that includes rod s that are connected. between themselves and function as a single syst em. When the rods are connected in series, root to tip, they form a ch ain. Chains can be connected between themselves and to other bodies. T he present paper presents a general structural model of a multirod sys tem. Each rod is nonuniform and can be made of anisotropic materials. Small strains and moderate elastic rotations are assumed in the struct ural modeling of a single rod. A finite element approximation is used in the structural analysis of the rods. The joints between the various rods in a chain, and between chains, are general and can describe alm ost any kind of connection that appears in reality. The model is nonli near and does not pose any practical limitation on the magnitude of th e deformation. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd