UDC534.832.08:624.

Michael Willford and Peter Young have over 30 years combined experience in the area of structural dynamics. The methods presented in this guide have been developed by them over the last 10 years and have been used extensively within Arup for the past 5 years.

A Design Guide for Footfall Induced Vibration of Structures

A Design Guide for Footfall Induced Vibration of StructuresA tool for designers to engineer the footfall vibration characteristics of buildings or bridges

M R Willford CEng MIMechE

P Young CEng MIMechEWhilst footfall induced vibrations on buildings or bridges is not normally signifi cant in terms of structural integrity, footfall vibration can be a critical serviceability condition. This publication presents a new method for evaluating the vibration due to a single pedestrian walking on a fl at surface, such as a fl oor slab or bridge deck. The method was developed by Arup, and has been calibrated and refi ned with verifi cation measurements taken on completed structures over a period of ten years.

This publication provides an informative description of the factors effecting footfall induced vibration and guides the engineer through the process of designing for vibration. It includes fl owcharts for calculation procedures and a useful glossary. It also includes worked examples on a concrete footbridge, a low frequency multispan post tensioned concrete fl oor and a high frequency ribbed slab.

CCIP-016 Published December 2006 ISBN 1-904482-29-5Price Group Q

© The Concrete Centre

Riverside House, 4 Meadows Business Park,Station Approach, Blackwater, Camberley, Surrey, GU17 9ABTel: +44 (0)700 4 500 500 www.concretecentre.com

CI/Sfb A cement and concrete industry publication

M R

Willford CEng M

IMechE and P Young CEng M

IMechE

CC

IP-016A

Design G

uide for Footfall Induced Vibration of Structures

Footfall Induced Vibration cover1 1Footfall Induced Vibration cover1 1 08/12/2006 15:42:2608/12/2006 15:42:26

A cement and concrete industry publication

Published for The Concrete Centre by The Concrete Society

CCIP-016 Published November 2006

ISBN 1-904482-29-5 Price Group Q© The Concrete Centre

The Concrete CentreRiverside House, 4 Meadows Business Park, Station Approach, Blackwater, Camberley, Surrey GU17 9AB Tel: +44 (0)1276 606800 Fax: +44 (0)1276 606801 www.concretecentre.com

CCIP publications are produced by The Concrete Society (www.concrete.org.uk) on behalf of the Cement and Concrete Industry Publications Forum – an industry initiative to publish technical guidance in support of concrete design and construction.

CCIP publications are available from the Concrete Bookshop at www.concretebookshop.com Tel: +44 (0)7004 607777

All advice or information from The Concrete Centre is intended for those who will evaluate the signifi cance and limitations of its contents and take responsibility for its use and application. No liability (including that for negligence) for any loss resulting from such advice or information is accepted by The Concrete Centre or its subcontractors, suppliers or advisors. Readers should note that publications are subject to revision from time to time and should therefore ensure that they are in possession of the latest

version.

Printed by Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, UK.

AcknowledgementsThe authors would like to acknowledge the contribution of their colleagues at Arup to the validation of the methods described in this guide, in particular Caroline Field, Kathy Gubbins, Kubilay Hicyilmaz and Mark Arkinstall. Professor Aleksander Pavic of Sheffi eld University also provided additional validation data from his own independent research projects. The authors would like to thank Dr Stuart Kerr for providing the data which is the basis of the footfall forces used here.

Finally, special thanks are due to Professor Tom Wyatt of Imperial College London, who was the independent peer reviewer for this document.

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A Design Guide for Footfall Induced Vibration of Structures

Contents

Nomenclature 2

1. Introduction 5

2. Understandingfootfallinducedvibration 6

3. Quantifyingvibration 13

4. Predictingfootfallinducedvibrationofstructures 22

5. Workedexamples 41

References 61

Glossary 62

Appendix A. Evaluating modal properties of a structure 66

Appendix B. Procedures for measuring floor response 75

Appendix C. Validation 79

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