Abstract
We analyse the different morphologies induced by an oscillating plate above an erodible bed. We present some data describing how the shape and the stiffness of the plate affects the main features of the generated heap. We investigate several configurations with different geometries, frequencies and the amplitudes. Some preliminary results are available, in which the role of the flexibility of the plate is taken in account. Unlike the rigid plate in which a proper oscillation induces the formation of one heap, the morphology of the bed is now characterized by more than one heap due to a different pressure profile induced by a flexible plate.