MODELING OF MECHANICAL WOOD JOINTS SUBJECTED TO CYCLIC AND MONOTONIC LOADINGS

An analytical model based on the finite element method was developed t o analyze wood joints having mechanical fasteners such as nails, bolts , and drift-pins. Nonlinear geometric properties, due to the deformati ons of the different components as well as the interactions between th e wood and the fasteners, were included. Material nonlinearities becau se of the yielding of fasteners and the crushing of wood under compres sive loadings were considered in the analysis. Friction, due to the wo od to fasteners interactions, was incorporated into the model. For eve ry load step, the total stiffness matrix was determined and updated fo r every change until equilibrium was achieved. The proposed model show ed excellent correlation with experimental data. The model is suitable for wood connections with different types of mechanical fasteners and can be a basis for providing hysteretic design models for different j oint types.