General Information

Figure 1 shows a freestanding steel bikeport.

Covered bike parking.
Covered bike parking made of steel

The steel structure consists mainly of columns, curved knee braces, transverse (overhanging) beams, a tie truss without diagonals, purlins, and metal roofing sheets. All structural members (except for the sheets) are made of circular hollow sections. The roof length l ≅ 17.5 m, the width w ≅ 3 m, and the column spacing s ≅ 4.5 m. The purlins overhang on both sides; the overhang o ≅ 2 m.

Purlins/Roof Vibration

Figure 2 shows the bikeport.

Bikeport.
Roof structure of a steel bikeport

The purlins are continuous over the whole roof length and have a diameter of about 4 cm; that gives a main span-to-depth ratio of about 113. The sheets are connected to the purlins by sheet metal screws, while the purlins are connected to the transverse beams by welding, as shown in figure 3.

Structural connections.
Sheet to purlin Purlin to transverse beam
Structural steel connections of a freestanding bikeport

Figure 4 shows a schematic layout of the bikeport.

Layout.
Layout of a freestanding bikeport

Video 1 shows the purlins/roof vibration during hand-induced excitation of location A; the vibration source location is marked by the red circle.

Video 1. Purlins/roof vibration during hand-induced excitation (location A).

The maximal amplitude at s/2 (yellow asterisk) is about 6 cm.

  • Which are the factors that affect the purlins vibration of the above shown structure?
    Can the wind cause a bigger amplitude?
    Is a structural failure due to purlins vibration induced by wind possible?