Plate bending analysis by unequally spaced splines

A cubic B-spline finite strip method (BFSM) is developed to analyze thin plates in bending. The basic mathematical relationships are derived for a direct stiffness formulation using a series type strip displacement function. Longitudinal behavior is modeled by a spline series in which unequal spline spacing is permitted. This feature allows local refinement of the discretization near patch and concentrated loads. Accuracy and convergence vis-à-vis alternative methods are compared. These include various finite element models, the conventional finite strip method and the BFSM with equally spaced splines. Comparisons show comparable accuracy with improved convergence. Oscillatory convergence due to Gibb's phenomenon, evident in some of the models, is avoided in the BFSM.