The influence of variable operating conditions upon the general multi-modal Weibull distribution

For the design spectrum prediction that should be realized within the expec ted service life, the influence of variable loading conditions is of paramo unt importance. Further, the results of the measurements must be properly e xtrapolated and the scatter of loading spectra has to be determined to assu re reliable service life prediction. To model load ranges, a general multi- modal Weibull distribution function has recently been proposed. Until now i t has been verified only for fixed operating conditions. The scope of this article is to prove that the same distribution model holds for the case of variable operating conditions, too. The influence of variable operating con ditions upon the distribution function is demonstrated by a few examples at tained by analysing loads acting upon a structure of a fork-lift. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.