Version 1.0, August 31, 2001, Copyright, Hugh Jack 1993-2001
· Trusses are at the heart of many engineering projects. We can see one of these in the bridge across the grand river.
· Basically, a truss is a collection of beams joined together to carry simple and complex loads.
· We can see trusses use in cranes,
· Trusses are typically made from beams that are joined with gusset plates.
· Other times obvious pin joints are used. Consider the pin joint on the end of the tension member below,
· With these types of problems the tension or compression of the beams/members should be clearly indicated. Materials and structures will not fail at the same load when in tension (necking then fracture), than in compression (buckling).
· We can see a tension member in a bridge with turnbuckles for tensioning,
· The basic assumptions used in most truss and frame problems are,
· Types of trusses are shown below,
· Picture of other types of trusses can be seen below,
· Many of the methods in this section can also be extended to the analysis of trusses in 3D.