Passive Control of Nonlinear Oscillations in Bridges

Abstract

This paper shows how to design the parameters of a passive control mechanism in order to keep bridges safe at all possible resonant frequencies caused by nonlinear effects due to midplane stretching. The control mechanism is a king‐post truss tendon mechanism. It is basically chosen to shift the natural frequencies of the bridge away from possible resonances. However, the structural parameters of this mechanism can be designed to eliminate or reduce the nonlinear effects on the primary‐resonant responses of bridges. The design has been made using a perturbation technique for a hinged‐hinged single‐span bridge.