Experimental investigation of clamped beams struck transversely by a mass

A series of experimental tests on clamped metal beams struck by a mass is reported in this paper. The impact point varies from the mid-span of the beam to the immediate vicinity of a support. Good agreement is found between the permanent transverse deformations of the beams, which were recorded in the experimental tests, and the theoretical rigid-plastic predictions which are reported in Liu and Jones (Int. J. Solids Struct. In press). Two types of beam failure were observed and classified as tensile tearing and shear failure. The onset of these failure modes depends on the uniaxial rupture strain ε_m of the materials, the location of the impact point l₁ and the clamping condition.