Dynamic Analysis of Orthotropic Plate Structures

Abstract
The dynamic response of orthotropic plate structures having fixed‐simply supported and free‐free boundary conditions is investigated using orthotropic plate theory. The influences of aspect ratio and rigidity ratio on the natural frequencies are examined and compared to those obtained from beam‐theory. The analytical results, verified by experimental test results, confirm that for this class of structures the natural frequencies beyond the first cannot be reliably estimated by beam‐theory.