Abstract

Numerous structures exhibit rocking behaviour when loaded dynamically, including monuments, towers, bridge piers, sculptures, etc. Recent earthquakes have increased world-wide incentive to retrofit such structures to avoid collapse during dynamic loading. In practice, rocking behaviour is typically prevented by tying structures down or reinforcing them. While these methods can be effective, they can over-stiffen structures, add stress, and be destructive.

This research lays the foundation for the development of a new class of retrofit solutions which exploit damping systems, through analytical and experimental modeling. Also, a pilot application of the proposed approach to a particular class of rocking problems, the masonry arches is presented. Further, this research offers an alternative way to describe the response of the rocking block, based on dimensional and orientational analysis, which brings forward the property of self-similarity for rocking structures.