Plywood Cantilever Deflection: Experimental, Analytical and FEM Approach

In this paper, the elastic behaviour in bending of three-layer plywood cantilever beams is analysed. Deflections of straight and half-circle cantilevers, loaded with a force at free end is determined experimentally and calculated using analytical and finite element method approach. The analytical calculation of deflection for the strait cantilever is obtained using a transformed cross section. The deflection of half-circle cantilever is determined by the classical laminated plate theory and Castigliano’s theorem. Loads and cantilever dimensions are varied in the study using the design of experiment. The deflection regression models for straight and semicircular plywood cantilevers are obtained from the experimental results. Analytically and numerically determined deflections of strait and half-circle cantilevers show very good agreement. Experimentally recorded deflections are approximately 30 % higher than analytical values. Stiffness properties and deflection values are influenced by direction of fibres in the outer layers of a three-layer plywood beam.