Simplified Restrainer Design Procedure for Multiple-Frame Bridges

The collapse of existing bridges due to unseating at supports and intermediate (in-span) hinges with inadequate seat-width can be prevented by the use of restrainers to limit the relative hinge opening. A new simplified procedure for the design of restrainers in bridges accounts for the dynamic characteristics and out-of-phase motion of adjacent frames as well as the inelastic behavior of the bridge. The simplified procedure is developed from an empirical relationship for the restrainer stiffness as a function of the frame stiffnesses, initial hinge displacement, target displacement, and target ductility of the structure. Parameter studies and case studies show that the simplified procedure limits the relative hinge displacement to a designer-specified value.

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