International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2

On the curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam

Osman Kopmaz
a
(corresponding author) and mer Gndogdu
b
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Uludag University, 16059 Bursa, Turkey
b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ataturk University, 25240 Erzurum, Turkey
E-mail: okopmaz@uludag.edu.tr; omergun@atauni.edu.tr
Abstract This paper deals with different approaches to describing the relationship between the
bending moment and curvature of a EulerBernoulli beam undergoing a large deformation, from a
tutorial point of view. First, the concepts of the mathematical and physical curvature are presented in
detail. Then, in the case of a cantilevered beam subjected to a single moment at its free end, the
difference between the linear theory and the nonlinear theory based on both the mathematical
curvature and the physical curvature is shown. It is emphasized that a careless use of the nonlinear
mathematical curvature and moment relationship given in most standard textbooks may lead to
erroneous results. Furthermore, a numerical example is given for the reader to make a quantitative
assessment.
Keywords beam deection; beam curvature; bending
Introduction
The EulerBernoulli theory of beams provides a reasonable explanation of the
bending behavior of long isotropic beams. It is based on the assumption that a rela-
tionship between bending moment and beam curvature exists. This relationship is
mathematically stated as
(1)
where k, M and EI denote the beam curvature, the bending moment at any cross-
section of the beam, and the bending rigidity of the beam, respectively. Eqn (1) is the
most signicant result of the EulerBernoulli theory, and it is experimentally veried
for isotropic materials in situations where deection due to shear may be neglected.
As will be seen later, eqn (1) is a nonlinear differential equation associated with the
deection curve of a beam. However, in almost all standard textbooks on the strength
of materials, the linearized form of eqn (1) is used, with the assumption that in most
common structural and mechanical engineering applications large deformations are
not allowed, for safety reasons [1, 2]. Indeed, this assumption is valid for a wide range
of applications. However, the deections of a leaf spring used in ground vehicles, for
instance, must be studied by using a nonlinear bending curvature equation [3, 4].
Moreover, increasing demands for higher operational speeds and lighter, more
compliant device constructions are leading to ever more situations in which a
linear theory of beams no longer gives satisfactory results. In the past 50
years, especially, developments in aerospace engineering, robotics and manufac-
turing have led engineers to excessively use nonlinear models that must be solved
k =
M
EI
Curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam 133
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
Fig. 1 A schematic for derivation of eqn (6).
numerically. Consequently, the scientists and engineers who wish to deeply under-
stand some physical phenomena that occur in mechanical systems which operate at
high speeds and undergo large deections must use the nonlinear strain formulas
and nonlinear curvature. Aconsiderable amount of literature on nonlinear mechanics
appeared in the late 1970s and early 80s. During this period, researchers used,
improved and discussed nonlinear straindeection formulas needed to study the
systems with large deformations and/or geometric stiffening [314]. Since the aim
of this paper is to treat the relationship between curvature and bending moment
with a tutorial approach, not all the literature associated with this subject will be cited
here.
Curvature of a planar curve
Consider an in-plane loaded uniform beam with coinciding shear centerline and
centroidal line. The curvature of a planar curve is dened as follows:
(2)
where q is the slope angle of the tangent at any point on the elastic curve, and s is
the arc length of the curve measured from an arbitrary starting point (see Fig. 1).
It is well known from differential calculus [15] that
(3)
and
(4) d d d
d
d
d x x y
y
x
x = + ( ) = +

2 2
1 2
2
1 2
1
tan q =
d
d
y
x
k
q
=
d
ds
Differentiating eqn (3) and solving for dq provides
(5)
The purpose of rewriting these relationships, which can easily be found in
any standard calculus book, is to attract attention to the fact that the x variable
here denotes the abscissa of any point of the curve in its nal position. Substituting
eqns (4 and 5) into eqn (2) yields the well known curvature formula, as
follows:
(6)
Eqn (6) is referred to as an explicit expression of the beam curvature in some text-
books, and is used in the literature to obtain large deections of beams [11, 12].
Eqn (6) is a correct formula for the curvature of planar curves, but there is a little
confusion in the application of this expression to problems. In the mechanics of
deformable bodies, deections can be referred to either the points of physical space
(Eulerian description) or the material points of the bodies (Lagrangian description)
[16]. The Lagrangian description is preferably used in texts on strength of materials,
where a material point is represented with its coordinates before deformation.
Such a coordinate is a kind of label for that point, whereas the x variable in the
curvature expression demonstrates the nal or instantaneous position of any point.
Therefore, when eqn (6) is used, one must take into consideration that the x coor-
dinate is dened in a Eulerian sense, because in this case a certain x coordinate rep-
resents a different material point. Otherwise, as will be shown later, incorrect results
will be obtained. The physical curvature of a beam differs from the mathematical
curvature in that a certain x coordinate on a physical curve corresponds to the same
material point, as opposed to the mathematical curvature case [17].
The physical curvature can also be obtained from eqn (2). Adifferent notation will
be used for elastic displacements. Elastic displacements of any point on the median
line of a beam in the x and y directions are denoted as u and v, respectively. Consider
Fig. 2, which shows the nal (or instantaneous, in a dynamic case) positions of two
points which were innitesimally close to each other before deformation.
It is obvious that the following relationships exist:
(7)
and
tan q =
+
d
d
d
d
v
x
u
x
1
k =
+

d
d
d
d
2
y
x
y
x
2
2
3 2
1
d
d
d
d
d
d
2
q
t
y
x
y
x
=
+

2
2
1
134 O. Kopmaz and . Gndogdu
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
Curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam 135
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
(8)
Note that dr approaches ds at the limit. From eqn (7), it follows that:
(9)
Substituting eqns (8 and 9) into eqn (2) yields the physical curvature as follows:
(10)
Eqn (10) was derived in a different way, based on SerretFrenet unit vectors in [17].
If one denes a new variable representing the nal coordinate on the x axis of a
point of beam as
(11)
it is easy to prove that
(12)
k =
+

d
d
d
d
2
2
v
X
v
X
1
2
3 2
X x u x = + ( )
k =
+

-
+

d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
2
2
v
x
u
x
v
x
u
x
u
x
v
x
1
1
2 2
3 2
d =
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
d
2 2
q
v
x
u
x
v
x
u
x
u
x
v
x
2 2
2 2
1
1
+

-
+

d = 1+
d
d
d
d
s
u
x
v
x

2 2
1 2
Fig. 2 A schematic for derivation of eqn (10).
136 O. Kopmaz and . Gndogdu
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
is still a valid formula [17]. However, the integration of eqn (12) is difcult because
the boundaries of the integral are variable. Instead, many authors prefer to use
eqn (6) by making successive corrections in the moment expression [10, 11].
A clampedfree beam
In this section, based on the EulerBernoulli theory, the analytical expressions of
the elastic deections of a beam will be derived using the mathematical and physi-
cal curvatures, and linear theory for comparison purposes. Assuming that the beam
is clamped at one end and free at the other, then the beam is subjected to a single
moment at its free end. The reason for choosing such a basic example is to have a
simple deection curve with a constant radius of curvature as
(13)
Since a planar curve with a constant radius of curvature is known to be a circle, the
deection curve of the beam will be a circular arc. Then, with the help of Fig. 3, the
following relationships can be written:
(14)
(15)
(16) u X x R
x
R
x = - =

- sin
X R R
x
R
= =

sin sin j
OA OA x R = = = j
R
M
EI
= =
1
k
Fig. 3 A beam in deection.
Curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam 137
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
and
(17)
Eqns (16 and 17) give the horizontal and vertical deections of a point of the
beam. Furthermore, note that the u deections are due to transversal deections
because the median line is inextensional for this kind of loading.
Eqns (1417) should satisfy both eqn (10) and eqn (12), because we obtained
these relationships by considering the displacement of a certain material point. In
fact, when the expressions
(18)
(19)
(20)
and
(21)
are substituted into eqn (10), one nds that k = 1/R, as expected. (Note that u and
v are the solutions to eqn (10)). Also, if we express v in terms of X, and substitute
into eqn (12) after taking the necessary derivatives with respect to X, we also obtain
k = 1/R.
Replacing the variable y with v, and substituting the derivatives of v with respect
to x into eqn (6), will not satisfy k = 1/R:
The reason is that the x variables in eqn (6) and eqn (10) have different meanings,
as explained above. Specically, x represents the nal position of a certain material
point.
At this point, the question may arise whether the differential equation that is
obtained by equating eqn (6) to a constant (radius of curvature) would give an equa-
tion for a circle. Of course, the answer will be afrmative. This circle will also be
identical to the one that is used to obtain the u and v deections in eqns (16 and 17).
However, if we want to nd the tip deection, and, for this purpose, if we substi-
tute x = L in the expression obtained by integrating eqn (6), the value that we nd
k =
+

1
1
1
2
3 2
R
x
R
x
R
R
cos
sin
d
d
2
2
v
x R
x
R
=

1
cos
d
d
v
x
x
R
=

sin
d
d
2
2
u
x R
x
R
= -

1
sin
d
d
u
x
x
R
=

- cos 1
v R R
x
R
= - ( ) = -

1 1 cos cos j
138 O. Kopmaz and . Gndogdu
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
will be incorrect. To clarify this point, consider eqn (6) and equate it to 1/R. The
following is obtained:
(22)
where ( ) denotes the derivation with respect to x, for convenience. Integrating
eqn (22) yields:
(23)
where we used the boundary condition v(0) = 0 for the cantilevered end of the beam.
Arranging and integrating eqn (23) once more gives
(24)
where the boundary condition v(0) = 0 was used, as well. The equation of the circle
given by eqn (24) can be expressed in the implicit form as follows:
(25)
Provided that x in eqn (25) is replaced with X, the true (deformed) material point
location, it is obvious that this circle is identical to the one that is used to obtain the
true u and v deections. Thus, the x variable in eqn (6) must be considered as X in
eqn (12). Ignoring this signicant point, for example, if we choose x = L in eqn (24)
to nd the tip deection, will give a value of
which might be completely meaningless in the case of L > R. Fig. 4 will be helpful
to understand the mistake caused by using x instead of X. From Fig. 4, we see that
the deection from eqn (24) is greater than the actual one, or no real solution may
exist.
Finally, we want to nd the deection curve based on the linear theory; then, we
may write the differential equation of the elastic curve as follows:
(26)
Its solution under the boundary conditions v(0) = v(0) = 0 is:
(27)
In the linear case, of course, the axial displacements, i.e. the u deections, are
assumed to vanish implicitly.
v
x M
EI
x
R x
R
@ = =

k
2
2
2
2
1
2 2
@ = v
M
EI
k
v R
R L
= -
-
2 2
v R x R - ( ) + =
2 2 2
v x R
R x
R
x
R
( ) = -
-
= - -

2 2
2
1 1

+ ( )
= =

v
v
R
x
R
x
x
1
1 1
2
1 2
0
d

+ ( )
=
v
v
R
1
1
2
3 2
Curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam 139
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
Now, we have three different expressions for the v deections of the beam, in
summary:
(17 repeated)
(24 repeated)
(27 repeated)
where the superscripts PC, MC! and Lin indicate that the deection formula is based
on the physical curvature, the misused mathematical curvature, and linear theory,
respectively. Assuming R > L, and expanding cos(x/R) and [1 - (x/R)]
1/2
into power
series around x = 0 yield
(28)
(29)
After substituting the series given above into eqns (17 and 24), the resulting
formulas, along with eqn (27), take the following forms:
(30)
(31)
MC!
v R
x
R
x
R
x
R
=

1
2
1
8
1
16
2 4 6
...
PC
v R
x
R
x
R
x
R
=

1
2
1
24
1
720
2 4 6
...
1 1
1
2
1
8
1
16
1
2 2 4 6
-

= -

<
x
R
x
R
x
R
x
R
x
R
...
for
cos
...
x
R
x
R
x
R
x
R
= -

+ 1
1
2
1
24
1
720
2 4 6
Lin
v
x M
EI
x
R x
R
= = =

k
2
2
2
2
1
2 2
MC!
v x R
R x
R
x
R
( ) = -
-
= -

2 2
2
1
PC
v R R
x
R
= - ( ) = -

1 1 cos cos j
Fig. 4 Comparison of different cases.
(27 repeated)
A comparison of these formulas justies that for small deections the linear theory
will give sufciently accurate results, but at large deections the results deviate
markedly.
To compare the results of eqns (17, 24 and 27), let us assign some reasonable
values to the physical parameters of the beam, which will give the radius of curva-
ture. In order that the stress and strain stay in the elastic region, we must choose a
suitable bending moment value. For standard steel, E = 2.1 10
11
N/m
2
and s
Safety
=
1.4 10
8
N/m
2
, and it will be assumed that the cross-section is solid circular. Based
on the condition s
max
s
Safety
, we nd that M should be equal to pD
3
s
Safety
/32.
Furthermore, EI = pD
4
E/64. Consequently, R = EI/M = ED/2s
Safety
. If we substitute
the numerical values of E and s
Safety
, we obtain R = 750D. If we prefer substituting
the value of D in mm, the relationship between R and D becomes as follows:
Let us take D = 5mm; then R will be 3.75m. Assume that L = 3m. The exact deec-
tions of the tip point then are
As is seen from these results, the difference between
PC
v and
Lin
v is about 10%
while that between
MC!
v and
PC
v is around 12%. The formula for
MC!
v
x=L
gives the
real values for D 4mm.
A discussion on curvature formulas and conclusions
It should be remembered that the curvature formula given by eqn (6) is based on the
nal (or instantaneous) state of the elastic curve of a beam. Otherwise, this formula
will lead to incorrect results, as shown in the preceding section. Some authors use
this formula in an iterative manner. Specically, they solve the differential eqn (6)
starting from the initial bending moment function. Then, they correct the moment
expression according to the new beam conguration by using an arc integral, and
continue this process so as to reach nal true elastic deections within a certain
error tolerance [10, 11]. When the differential eqn (10) is integrated, it will give the
direct solution. However, there is a difculty in integrating it. In this equation, two
different dependent variables, u and v, appear. For the inextensional case, u
can be expressed in terms of v and its derivatives. For this special case, there is a
relationship between u and v:
(32) 1 1
2
2
= + ( ) + u v
PC
PC
MC!
Lin
m
m
m
m
v
u
v
v
x L
x L
x L
x L
=
=
=
=
=
= -
=
=
1 337
0 309
1 500
1 200
.
.
.
..
R D m mm [ ] = [ ] 0 75 .
Lin
v R
x
R
=

1
2
2
140 O. Kopmaz and . Gndogdu
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
Curvature of an EulerBernoulli beam 141
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
or
(33)
Solving eqn (33) for u yields:
(34)
If it is assumed that u
2
<< u, we obtain u from eqn (33) as
(35)
which is used as an approximation to u to nd the potential of a normal force acting
on a beam in many publications. If the expression (eqn 34) with a positive signed
square root term is substituted in eqn (10), one obtains the following for an inex-
tensional case:
(36)
Eqn (36) is nothing but the curvature formula expressed in terms of arc length, in
which s is replaced with x because, for an inextensional case, the coordinate of any
material point in terms of s, in any conguration, is always equal to its initial coor-
dinate x in the Lagrangian sense [18]. In fact, the curvature formula in which s is
the independent variable is given by [18] as
(37)
The denominators of both eqn (36) and eqn (37) become zero for dv/dx = 1 and dv/ds
= 1, that means q = 90, as shown in Fig. 5, because sinq = dv/ds. Then, (d
2
v/ds
2
)ds
k =
-

d
d
d
d
2
v
s
v
s
2
2
1
k =

-
v
v 1
2
= - u v
1
2
2
= - - u v 1 1
2
+ + = u u v
2 2
2 0
Fig. 5 Point at which eqns (36 and 37) fail.
142 O. Kopmaz and . Gndogdu
International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education 31/2
= cos q dq. For q = 90, cos q = 0 and hence, d
2
v/ds
2
= 0. It is seen that eqns (36 and
37) lead to an indeterminacy for dv/ds = 1 and dv/dx = 1, respectively [13].
This difculty can be overcome by controlling the values of dv/ds and d
2
v/ds
2
at
every step of the numerical integration, and by changing the integration step so as
to skip that critical point and so avoid numerical indeterminacy.
Acknowledgement
We would like to express our sincere appreciation to Dr K. S. Anderson for his
support and valuable comments during the preparation of this paper.
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