REMOVAL OF FINITE DEFORMATION USING STRAIN TRAJECTORIES

A technique is described for removing the effects of finite deformation, given the principal values and orientations of strain at a number of points throughout a deformed body. Using the principal orientations, strain trajectories are constructed for the deformed state. The body is divided into finite elements bounded by these trajectories. Each element is then unstrained without changing its orientation or position. This process creates artificial voids and overlaps, which are minimized by imparting rigid translations and rotations to the elements according to a least squares method. The result is the pattern of strain trajectories for the undeformed state. It is shown that the trajectories for the deformed and undeformed states may be used as reference coordinates in order to map the change in shape of any body as it passes from the deformed to the undeformed state or vice versa. The technique is tested using models of a folded layer and a shear zone. It is suggested that the technique is versatile enough to allow for errors in original strain data. Although the technique has so far been applied to two-dimensional deformations, a similar method should be usable in three dimensions. © 1979.