Abstract
The quantification of contact area and pressure distribution in a bolted joint is essential information, as it determines the integrity of the joint. Most of Current bolted joint designs are based on approximate solutions of the pressure distribution in complicated hand formulas. The purpose of the present paper is to find a simplified analytic expression for the stiffness of the clamped member. The derivation is based on the principle of superposition. The stiffness of the conical solid member is estimated first and from which the stiffness of the hole material is subtracted. The results obtained were accurate and proved to agree with formulas that are widely used.
