Seismic Performance Assessment of Wheelchairs in Buildings

George C. Yao, X. L. Lin, Chen Yi Lin

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

This study employs a systematic identification method to analyze the risk of overturning for wheelchair users inside buildings under earthquake excitation through shaking table experiments and numerical analysis. Experimental results indicate that under a sinusoidal wave of 300 gal, the most severe rocking and overturning response occurs at the excitation frequency of 0.9–1.1 Hz, while some degree of rocking may occur at 0.8–2.3 Hz. If floor height is translated into the natural frequency of the building, all wheelchairs will have a risk of overturning at the threshold floor acceleration of 300 gal for buildings with a total height of 4–13 stories, and the risk is highest for buildings of 9–11 stories. Numerical analysis, by RecurDyn, extends above shaking table experiment findings to wheelchair response at higher excitation level and lower excitation frequencies. It is found that if excitation is larger than 300 gal, buildings taller than 11 stories also pose a overturning threat to wheelchair users.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 7th International Conference on Earthquake Engineering and Seismology - 7ICEES 2023—Volume 2
EditorsMurat Altug Erberik, Aysegul Askan, Mustafa Kerem Kockar
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH
Pages493-507
Number of pages15
ISBN (Print)9783031573569
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024
Event7th International Conference on Earthquake Engineering and Seismology, ICEES 2023 - Antalya, Turkey
Duration: 2023 Nov 62023 Nov 10

Publication series

NameLecture Notes in Civil Engineering
Volume401 LNCE
ISSN (Print)2366-2557
ISSN (Electronic)2366-2565

Conference

Conference7th International Conference on Earthquake Engineering and Seismology, ICEES 2023
Country/TerritoryTurkey
CityAntalya
Period23-11-0623-11-10

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Civil and Structural Engineering

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