First-passage time for the snap-through of a shell-type structure

The first-passage problem associated with snap-through of a shallow cylindrical shell subjected to a wide-band stationary stochastic loading is examined in this paper. The structure is sufficiently flat so as to exhibit only a symmetric mode under the action of the applied load. The approach utilizes a high-speed simulation technique to obtain sufficient samples from which statistics of the response may be computed. This allows the calculation of an approximate probability distribution for the parameter of interest. Zero initial conditions are assumed so that the problem is non-stationary. Results of this analysis are compared with the mean first-passage time obtained by numerically solving the associated Pontriagin-Vitt equation.