Using techniques from asymptotic analysis, the second author has recently identified equations that generalize the classical Marguerre-von Kármán equations for a nonlinearly elastic shallow shell by allowing more realistic boundary conditions, which may change their type along the lateral face of the shell. We first reduce these more general equations to a single “cubic” operator equation, whose sole unknown is the vertical displacement of the shell. This equation generalizes a cubic operator equation introduced by M. S. Berger and P. Fife for analyzing the von Kármán equations for a nonlinearly elastic plate. We then establish the existence of a solution to this operator equation by means of a compactness method due to J. L. Lions.
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