Deflection of battened beams with shear and discrete effects

This paper presents a theoretical analysis for determining the transverse deflection of simply supported battened beams subjected to a uniformly distributed transverse quasi-static load. The analysis considers not only the shear effect but also the discrete effect of battens on the transverse deflection of the battened beam. The analytical solution is obtained using the principle of minimum potential energy. Numerical validation of the present analytical solution is accomplished using finite element methods. The present analytical solution shows that the shear effect on the transverse deflection of battened beams increases with the cross-section area of the main member but decreases with the cross-section area of the batten. The longer the battened beam is, or the larger the moment of inertia of the main member is, the smaller the shear effect will be.