Abstract
A method is suggested to deal with the wave propagation problems in composite‐laminated plates subjected to uncertainty in load and material property based on the interval analysis method and the hybrid numerical method (HNM). The uncertain parameters are treated as intervals, in which only their bounds of the uncertainty are needed. Using the first‐order Taylor expansion, the transient responses can be approximated as a linear function of the uncertain parameters. In this function, the transient responses at the midpoints of the uncertain parameters can be obtained directly through the HNM. A sensitivity analysis technique is suggested to calculate the first derivative of the transient responses with respect to each uncertain parameter based on two cases that the parameter exists in load or material property. Applying the interval extension in interval mathematics, the lower and upper bounds of the transient responses caused by the uncertainty can be finally obtained. The present method is applied to a numerical example, in which the uncertainty of the load, elastic constants of the layer material and ply orientations are all investigated, and the results demonstrate the effectiveness of the present method. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.