Analysis of Vibration Effects on Floor of Office Building due to Ground Vibrations from Passing Vehicles

Abstract

Since the earliest days of ground road transportations and constructions in urban areas, there have been complaints of vibration in building caused by this external source of vibration, known as ground borne vibration. Vibration when it exceeds the recommended threshold could affect the structure of the building and any sensitive equipment housed inside the building, as well as causing discomfort and annoyance to the occupants of the building. The objectives of the study are to determine the level of vibration on each floor of a multi storey building due to ground borne vibration from road traffic, second to numerically investigate the structural response on the multi storey building from vehicles, and lastly to assess the vibration response obtained from both vehicles with the vibration criteria guideline. The selected building for this study is Registrar Office building located in Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM). The scope of study is focused on the effect of ground borne vibration from vehicles on multi storey building and analyzing the data using MATLAB and ANSYSv14. The real inputs of vibration from vehicles were measured and obtained using Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV). The vibration level from vehicles and footfalls on the multi storey office building can be determined using Vibration Criteria (VC) guidelines by Gordon. Finally, from the study, the vibration level achieved for this Registrar Office building is above the ISO level which is exceeds the acceptable vibration limit for office building.