Coupling member for damping vibrations in building structures
US8881491B2 · kind B2 · utility
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 11, 2012 |
| Grant date | Nov 11, 2014 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 11, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC E)Fixed Constructions
- CPC primaryE04B1/3412
- WIPO fieldCivil engineering
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
A building structure including a plurality of vertical elements extending from a ground surface with at least a first of the vertical elements connected to a second of the vertical elements by a coupling member, the coupling member includes a damping element for damping vibrations in the building structure resulting from relative movement between the first and second vertical elements due to lateral loads applied to the building structure. The damping element undergoes deformation due to the relative movement between the vertical elements causing the damping material to be activated in shear. At least one of a first and second fuse member is connected to at least one of first and second ends of the damping element respectively. The fuse member is selected from a material, and otherwise sized and dimensioned to exhibit semi-rigid behavior when the damping element undergoes deformation due to loads below a predetermined load limit and to undergo deformation without substantially increasing the load in the fuse and in the damping element when loads exceed the predetermined load limit, such that the damping element is prevented from deforming beyond its predetermined deformation limit …
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.