Dynamic characteristics of a base isolated building from ambient vibration measurements and low level earthquake shaking

Abstract

Ambient vibration tests were conducted on a base-isolated apartment building in Takamatsu, Japan, to determine the mode shapes and the associated natural frequencies and damping ratios at very low levels of excitation. The latest developments in signal analysis for modal decomposition are used to analyze the ambient response data. A finite element model of the building and isolators was calibrated and refined using the experimental results from the ambient vibration tests. This model was then used to simulate the recorded response of the building under excitation from a small earthquake. The finite element model, calibrated by ambient vibration data and the low level of earthquake shaking, provides the starting point for modelling the non-linear response of the building when subjected to strong shaking.