OPTEC - K.U.Leuven Center of Excellence: Optimization in Engineering

Footbridges are often aesthetically appealing slender and lightweight structures, and hence susceptible to dynamic excitation by crossing pedestrians. When this has not been properly accounted for in the design, the bridge may suffer from excessive vibrations. Examples are the Millennium bridge (London) and the Solferino bridge (Paris) that were retrofitted, using fluid viscous dampers or tuned mass dampers, shortly after being put into service. The retrofit design (damper characteristics and position) is critical but difficult due to the random nature of the load and the high-modal density, and hence requires an accurate dynamic bridge model. This project focusses on the estimation and validation of accurate black- and white-box models of a recently built footbridge (e.g. the footbridge crossing the E40 in Wetteren). The model is subsequently used to demonstrate how the optimal damper locations are determined, minimizing the response under pedestrian excitation.