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3 worked examples · 3 short videos each
Structural / Timber and steel flitch beam
Fontana feature: Custom formulasCalculate stiffness
and load sharing
in a flitch beam.
Use an original technical note to create formulas for a timber-and-steel beam. Compare plate thicknesses, bending stresses and deflection at a fixed beam depth.
“At a fixed beam depth, how do timber width and steel plate thickness affect stiffness and deflection?”
01 / Search
Find the geometry
and modelling assumptions.
Ask how the timber members and steel plate share bending. Open the original note to inspect the labelled section, input table and assumed load transfer.
The timber is 300 mm deep; the centred plate is 260 mm deep. Confirm the separate depths and the common-curvature assumption before creating formulas.
The material moduli are stated demo assumptions, with no named timber grade.
Ask about the flitch detail, open the cited note and inspect the original diagram and modelling assumptions.
02 / Custom formulas
Create the stiffness
and deflection formulas.
Use the note to create LaTeX workings for stiffness, bending-moment share, elastic stress and deflection. Keep the source citations with the calculation and use the note’s diagram to review the geometry.
Check the 10 mm plate reference case: 59.13% steel moment share and 13.95 mm bending deflection against the adopted 16 mm demo target.
A deflection pass applies only to the stated model and adopted target.
Create the calculation from the note, review the dimensions and formulas, then compare the reference result with the worked example.
03 / Batch
Compare plate thicknesses
at a fixed beam depth.
Run six variants with different timber widths and steel plate thicknesses. Keep the span, beam depths, material moduli and total load fixed.
Compare steel moment share, timber and steel stresses, deflection utilisation and pass/fail. The 6 mm plate case exceeds the demo limit; the 10 mm reference case is below it.
The batch CSV uses the calculator’s input names and units, with span in metres. Stiffness and deflection in millimetres are shown in the individual calculation.
Import the six input rows, confirm the span is 4.8 m, then compare stresses, moment share and deflection utilisation against the chosen limit.
Custom formulas with source citations, elastic stress and deflection outputs, and a six-case comparison against an adopted demo deflection limit.
Four pages: original geometry, assumed inputs, a common-curvature model, a worked result and six comparison cases. Companion input and reference-output CSVs are included.
The note analyses an idealised beam with sufficient load transfer to maintain common curvature. Moduli and the deflection target are demonstration assumptions. Results cover elastic bending; connection design, bearing, strength, buckling and total long-term deflection need separate assessment.
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