Identification of Time Variations of Moving Loads Applied to Plates Resting on Viscoelastic Foundation Using a Meshfree Method

Dynamic identification of the intensity of the moving loads applied to structures is an important task in aerospace, marine, and transportation industries. In the present work, a general technique is presented for identification of the time variations in moving loads applied to plate structures resting on viscoelastic foundation. The identification problem is formulated as an inverse problem, which utilizes dynamic responses. The direct analyses required for the identification problem are performed by a meshfree method based on the moving node technique. In this technique, a node, which travels with the applied force, is utilized in the meshfree method. Since there is no connectivity between the nodes of meshfree methods, this technique can be implemented easily, while reducing the computational labor. Another benefit of this technique is that any simple or complicated trajectory of the moving load can be handled without any additional concerns. Two numerical example problems are solved and the effects of several parameters, including the measurement error, and number of sensors on the accuracy of the results are investigated. Through the examples, it is shown that the presented technique can identify the time variations in moving loads efficiently and accurately.