The experimental and analytical study of geometrically nonlinear bending of a cantilever beam under a distributed gravity load

This paper describes an approximate analytical solution for the geometrically nonlinear bending of a thin elastic cantilever beam under a uniformly distributed gravity load. The solution is based on the linearized Euler-Bernoulli equation of mechanics of materials. Traditionally, such a linear approach is used for small (geometrically linear) deflections. The authors have modified the original equation with an arc-length preservation condition. The modified solution allows one to obtain bending shapes, deflection, and axial displacement in the range of loads corresponding to geometrically nonlinear bending of a beam (large deflections). An experimental study is conducted to verify the proposed solution. A thin steel band bent by gravity is used as a sample. Changes in the length of the bent sample part allow one to obtain various dimensionless load parameters. The deflections and axial displacements averaged on experimental statistics are determined. Bending shapes are obtained by the least square method of 5th order. Experimental and theoretical data are shown to be in good agreement. This fact confirms that the approximate analytical solution can be applied to solve large deflection problems in a wider range of loads than normally considered in the original linear theory.