Rectangular mindlin plates on elastic foundations

Rectangular plates on Winkler foundations are analysed on the basis of Mindlin's thick plate theory. The plates are simply supported on the two opposite edges and the other two edges may be arbitrarily restrained, e.g. simply supported, clamed or free. Solutions are presented in the Levytype single series forms, of which forms must be distinguished into three different forms depending upon the properties of plate materials and the modulus of foundation. The effects of shear deformation are first showed numerically for the deflections and strees resultants at major points of the plate. Furthermore, the twisting moment and shear force distributions along the edges and centre lines of the plate are illustrated graphically to demonstrate the principal difference between Mindlin's plate theory and classical thin plate theory.