Investigation of dynamic cable-deck interaction in a physical model of a cable-stayed bridge. Part I: Modal analysis

A description of an experimental investigation involving the study of the d ynamic interaction between the cables and the deck/towers system in cable-s tayed bridges is presented. The work was carried out on a physical model of a cable-stayed bridge (the Jindo Bridge, in South Korea), whose characteri stics of stiffness and mass have been conveniently scaled. Standard modal a nalysis tests were performed using both an electrodynamic shaker and a shak ing table, leading to the creation of a high-quality database, characterizi ng the dynamic behaviour of the bridge. The study shows the existence of a clear dynamic interaction between the cables and the deck/towers system, as sociated with the appearance of several groups of mode shapes, at closely s paced frequencies, involving different cable movements, but similar configu rations of the girder and towers. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd .