FLEXURALANALYSIS OF 4-POINT SUPPORTED GLASS PANEL WITH HOLES BY FINITE DIFFERENCE METHOD

Based on the theory of thin plates with small deflections, finite difference method is used to analyze the displacements and stresses of 4-point supported glass panels. At the support point, where the stresses are singular, a special method is derived to modify the equation. A formula to calculate the maximum principal stress around the hole is also provided. Numerical examples demonstrate that the method gives an efficient solution for stress distribution in point-supported glass panel. The results agree well with finite element solution and code data. The present method for stress analysis around the hole provides a basis for supplementing the design code.