AOE 5024, Fall 2015

VEHICLE STRUCTURES
INSTRUCTOR: DR. RAKESH K. KAPANIA, MITCHELL PROFESSOR, 213E RANDOLPH
HALL, PHONE: (540)-231-4881, e-mail: rkapania@vt.edu
OFFICE HOURS: TTh 10AM to 11.30 AM.
TEXTBOOK: Energy and Finite Element Methods in Structural Mechanics, by I. H.
Shames and C. L. Dym, Taylor and Francis, New York, NY, 2005. Any edition would be fine.
REFERENCES: From time to time, the course requires the concepts learned in any
undergraduate course on Mechanics of Materials and Structures. You should have access to a
reference that contains such information. Two excellent references are the Mechanics of
Materials by F. Beer, E. R. Johnston, J. DeWolf, and D. F. Mazurek, and the Aircraft Structures
for Engineering Students by T. H. G. Megson.
TESTS and FINAL: There will be two mid-term tests and a final.
HOMEWORK: There will be a number of home works assigned (generally one per week). The
homework will be due one week after the date assigned. While doing all homework and taking
tests, you will be expected to strictly follow the VIRGINIA TECH. HONOR SYSTEM. All
assignments submitted shall be considered as graded work. All aspects of your coursework are
covered by the Honor System. Any suspected violations of the honor code will be promptly
reported to the graduate honor system. Honesty in your academic work will develop into
professional integrity. The faculty and students of Virginia Tech. will not tolerate any form of
academic dishonesty. For full credit, the homework must be submitted by the due date.
GRADES: Final Exam 25%, 2 Tests @ 20% each, Homework 35%. The two tests are takehome, while the final would be in-class. The final is a two-hour test (Tuesday, Dec., 15th, at
12.00 noon) that consists of part True/False and part Multiple Choice questions. It will be a
comprehensive test of all the material covered in the course.
TOPICS COVERED

A brief review of important development in Structural Mechanics.

Theory of linear elasticity; Plane stress problems (Chap.1)
Calculus of variations for boundary value problems (Chap. 2)
Variational Principles; Ritz Method (Chap. 3)
Beams (Chap. 4)
Saint Venant Torsion Theory (Chap. 5)
Finite Element Method for trusses, beams, frames and plane stress problems (Chaps. 912)