Some aspects of "characterization" problems in geomechanics

The paper presents a discussion of some of the aspects of parameter 'characterization' problems (or back analyses) in the field of Geomechanics. In the first part of the paper, inverse and direct procedures are discussed for the solution of characterization problems with reference to 'linear' material behm•iour. The direct procedure is then applied to the determination of geometry, material and load parameters, on the basis of the displacements obtained from a hypothetical in-situ load test. Finally, the influence of the number of input data (and of the experimental errors affecting them) on the results of characterization problems is discussed.