Experimental-Numerical Hybrid Method for Elastic Contact Problems

An experimental-numerical hybrid technique for determining the contact stress distribution between two elastic bodies having both frictionless as well as bonded contact is discussed in this paper. The hybrid method makes use of experimental data collected at a section far from the contact surface and the numerically generated influence coefficients, in terms of the applied unit normal and shear stresses. The experimental data, i.e., the differences in normal stresses and the shear stress, are obtained using photoelastic analysis for the examples illustrated in this paper. When substituted into equations corresponding to the unit normal and shear stress applied in the contact region, this results in a set of algebraic equations which, when solved, allow the contact stress distribution to be obtained. This method is illustrated with examples involving simple and complex geometries of the contacting bodies.