Design-Oriented Analysis of Structures: A Unified Approach (Solid Mechanics and Its Applications #95)

This book was developed while I was teaching graduate courses on analysis, design and optimization of structures, in the United States, Europe and Israel. Structural analysis is a main part of any design problem, and the analysis often must be repeated many times during the design process. Much work has been done on design-oriented analysis of structures recently and many studies have been published. The purpose of the book is to collect together selected topics of this literature and to present them in a unified approach. It meets the need for a general text covering the basic concepts and methods as well as recent developments in this area. This should prove useful to students, researchers, consultants and practicing engineers involved in analysis and design of structures. Previous books on structural analysis do not cover most of the material presented in the book. The book deals with the problem of multiple repeated analyses (reanalysis) of structures that is common to numerous analysis and design tasks. Reanalysis is needed in many areas such as structural optimization, analysis of damaged structures, nonlinear analysis, probabilistic analysis, controlled structures, smart structures and adaptive structures. It is related to a wide range of applications in such fields as Aerospace Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture.