Chapter 2, Problem 22P

A simply supported beam is loaded as shown in Fig. P2.22. Using singularity functions, the displacement along the beam can be expressed by the equation:

$\begin{array}{l}{u}_y\left(x\right)=\frac{-5}{6}\left[{\langle x-0\rangle }^4-{\langle x-5\rangle }^4\right]+\frac{15}{6}{\langle x-8\rangle }^3\\ +75{\langle x-7\rangle }^2+\frac{57}{6}{x}^3-238.25x\end{array}$

By definition, the singularity function can be expressed as follows:

${\langle x-a\rangle }^n=\left\{\begin{array}{cc}{\left(x-a\right)}^n& \text{when }x>a\\ 0& \text{when }x\le a\end{array}\right\}$

Develop a program that creates a plot of displacement versus distance along the beam x. Note that $x=0$ at the left end of the beam.

FIGURE P2.22