Synopsis

When looking a catapult that is ready to throw a stone, one can observe that there is very little displacement of the beam when the stone is put on the catapult (figure 1). This is due the fact that the rope act as a column and takes the load of the stone. The rope has been prestressed by the bending energy stored in the wooden beam. By adding weight on the catapult the rope will lose tension. The same concept can be used to shorter the span of a beam or a bridge. For instance, a cable can be set up at mid span of a beam. In order to have an approximately flat resulting unloaded with external forces configuration, the initial configuration must be curved. The second step is to load the beam with a cable that will act as a column

Acknowledgement

Facts & Figures

  • 350m2
  • 2kms of GFRP tubes
  • 500k$
  • 1 day for erection

Client & Design

  • ACD
  • TESS
  • NAVIER

Partners

  • Ferrari
  • Esmery Caron