Abstract
This paper presents a form-finding method for cable-strut structures with given cable forces and strut lengths. The topology of the structure, the internal force distribution of cables and the rest length of struts are given in advance. A total potential energy function in terms of nodal coordinates is derived according to the initial conditions. The equilibrium configuration satisfying the given initial conditions is essentially a stationary point of the energy function. An intermediate function is proposed and used to solve the stationary point problem. A configuration expected by the designer can be obtained when proper initial nodal coordinates are used. The effectiveness and practicability of the proposed method are verified by two typical examples.
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