EFFECT OF FLEXIBILITY ON LOW-VELOCITY IMPACT RESPONSE

The nature of the response of compact and flexible bodies subject to l ow velocity impact is studied. The key parameters which govern the res ponse for such impacts are identified and their effects on impact resp onse are examined through numerical simulations. It is shown that thre e non-dimensional parameters are sufficient to completely govern the l ow velocity impact response of such structures. By knowing the impact conditions the nature of the response as well as the maximum impact fo rce can be predicted without running a simulation or conducting an exp eriment. It is also shown that the impact response of different struct ures with arbitrary boundary conditions can be scaled in a similar way . It is anticipated that the results will be useful in designing for i mpact loading, in providing guidelines for choosing appropriate simple models and in scaling experimental results between different structur es. (C) 1998 Academic Press.