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Calculation Basis
Assumptions & Limits
- The page supports preliminary checks but does not replace full code compliance review.
- Allowable limits remain project-specific and must be checked separately.
- Elastic modulus, inertia, and loading inputs must match the real member.
Reference Basis
- Documentation: Methodology
- Documentation: Engineering Review
- Roark's Formulas for Stress and Strain
- Mechanics of Materials references
- Project-specific standard reference
Validation Examples
These check cases show how key pages compare against known elastic beam benchmarks or symmetric reference cases.
Euler-Bernoulli UDL benchmark
Case setup
L = 6.0 m, w = 5.0 kN/m, E = 210 GPa, I = 8500 cm^4
Validated metric
Maximum deflection
Reference
Reference result: 4.73 mm
Calculator
Calculator result: 4.73 mm
Check
Difference: 0.00%
Benchmark: closed-form simple-span UDL formula
Model Basis
| Theory | Euler-Bernoulli beam theory |
| Main assumption | Plane sections remain plane |
| Best fit | Slender beams with small deflections |
| Member stiffness | Constant E and I over the span |
| Current preset | Simply supported beam with full-span UDL |
| Typical use | Beam checks and teaching examples |
Engineering Notes
- Use this page when you want the standard elastic beam model without project-standard framing around it.
- The model is appropriate for slender structural members where shear deformation and large-rotation effects are not governing.
- When continuity, partial fixity, or multiple supports start to control the response, switch to the advanced beam pages that use the FEA-based solver.
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