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Deflections of inflated cylindrical cantilever beams subjected to bending and torsion

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 July 2016

J. P. H. Webber
J. P. H. Webber*
Affiliation:
Department of Aeronautical Engineering , University of Bristol
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Extract

In the aeronautical field, there has been from time to time an interest in inflatable structures, ranging from their consideration for use in space to the design and manufacture of an inflatable wing for a man-powered aircraft and their use in remotely piloted vehicles . This interest stems from the fact that such structures have relatively low weight; are suitable for reacting light loads and can be packed into a small volume.

One particularly useful structural component is the inflated circular cylinder acting as a cantilever and a number of such cylinders are used in Ref. 3 to form the main load carrying structure of a wing. In Ref. 1 an expression is derived for the collapse load of a single cylinder with the assumption that the root behaves like a plastic hinge, and in Ref. 5, Comer and Levy go on to consider the beam deflections and stresses between incipient wrinkling and final collapse.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Aeronautical Journal , Volume 86 , Issue 858 , October 1982 , pp. 306 - 312
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 1982 

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References

1. Leonard, R. W., Brooks, G. W. and McComb, H. G. Structural Considerations of Inflatable Re-Entry Vehicles. NASA TN D-457, September 1960.Google Scholar
2. Harris, J. T. and Stimler, F. J. Expandable Structures for Space. Astronautics. April 1961, 6, 30.Google Scholar
3. McQuaile, M. Coping with Inflation. Aerospace, June/July 1981, 8, 6, 23,Google Scholar
4. Del, F. Small, Inflated-Wing RPVDemonstrated. Aviation Week and Space Technology, 26th March, 1979, 57.Google Scholar
5. Comer, R. L. and Levy, S. Deflections of an Inflated Circular Cylinder Cantilever Beam. AIAA Journal, July 1963, 1, 7.Google Scholar
6. Oldfield, R. J. and Pearson, D.M. The Structural Behaviour of Inflated Cylindrical Cantilever Beams. University of Bristol, Department of Aeronautical Engineering, Report No. 260, June 1981.Google Scholar