Dynamic Bridge Response for a Bridge-friendly Truck

Abstract

A truck with controlled semi-active suspensions traversing a bridge is examined for benefits to the bridge structure. The original concept of a road-friendly truck was extended to a bridge-friendly vehicle, using the same optimization tools. A half-car model with two independently driven axles is coupled with simply supported bridges (beam, slab model) with the span range from 5 m to 50 m. Surface profile of the bridge deck is either stochastic or in the shape of a bump or a pot in the mid-span. Numerical integration in the MATLAB/SIMULINK environment solves coupled dynamic equations of motion with optimized truck suspensions. The rear axle generates the prevailing load and to a great extent determines the bridge response. A significant decrease in contact road-tire forces is observed and the mid-span bridge deflections are on average smaller, when compared to commercial passive suspensions.