Out-of-plane behaviour of the taiwanese traditional complex bracket systems

The out-of-plane structural behaviour of the Taiwanese traditional complex bracket systems was studied to understand the joint resistance effects of the short vertical post (Guatong) and its adjoining complex brackets in the global frame. Cyclic horizontal loading test, with constant vertical force, was applied to three China Fir specimens. Preliminary results revealed that structural members, facing the out-of-plane direction, tend to be structurally weaker than its traverse counterparts when subjected to tension. When the joint connections of the horizontal members were subjected to compression, the global structure tends to behave like a brace. Likewise, when the structure is subjected to tension, the Gong and purlin members tend to be pulled out from their joints more easily. The counter resistance force observed from the tension side tends to be similar to the rotation of rigid body. This study also suggests that reinforcement design should be taken into consideration in future to increase to the global stiffness of the complex brackets along the out-of-plane direction.