Structural Dynamics

Abstract

The basic structure of the five previous editions is still maintained in this Sixth Edition. After the release of the Fifth Edition in 2004, academic and industrial environments have been changed, although the fundamentals have not changed over 15 years. When the author started to teach structural dynamics since 2011, the most challenging part as an instructor has been to present how students can solve and simulate the structural dynamics using the computer program. There is a limited information available to show how we can solve structural dynamics in finite element method–based commercial software. When understanding the background of undergraduate and graduate students who are first exposed to structural dynamics, the fundamentals are mainly considered as core content. The author believes that a line-by-line computer language is a helpful learning and teaching tool for its application of fundamentals. This is the major motivation of the revision of this textbook. This revised textbook intends to provide enhanced learning materials for students to learn structural dynamics, ranging from basics to advanced topics, including their application. When a line-by-line programming language is included with solved problems, students can learn course materials easily and visualize the solved problems using a program. Among several programming languages, MATLAB® has been adopted by many academic institutions across several disciplines. Many educators and students in the USA and many international institutions can readily access MATLAB®, which has an appropriate programming language to solve and simulate problems in the textbook. It effectively allows matrix manipulations and plotting of data. Therefore, multi-degree-of-freedom problems can be solved in conjunction with the finite element method using MATLAB®. As of 2018, SAP2000 presented in the Fifth Edition is currently outdated, at least regarding user interface procedure. The revision author Young Hoon Kim still believes that SAP2000 includes routines for the analysis and design of structures with linear or nonlinear behavior subjected to static or dynamics loads. However, in this edition exclusion of SAP2000 is necessary to minimize the learner’s confusion to link between contents and solving with the aid of computer programming language. The author still believes that SAP2000 can be one of the best tools to solve structural analysis and structural dynamics in complex systems. Practical engineers who are eager to use commercial software can learn from many other textbooks available in the market.