Point Excitation of a Cylindrical Shell

A thin cylindrical shell forced at a point comprises a useful model for studying the motion of a submarine hull set into vibration by mounted mechanical equipment. The formal solution for point excitation is readily derived in a modal expansion, and the Fourier inversion is performed. The known solutions of flat plate motion must apply when the forcing frequency exceeds the radial resonance, therefore the low-frequency case is generally of more interest. The behavior of the various angular modes of motion, the effects of water loading, and the radiation of sound by the vibrating shell, are considered. [Supported by Office of Naval Research, Contract No. Nonr-2322 (00).]