Research, development and practical applications on structural response control of buildings

Abstract

Various types of passive and active structural response control systems have been developed and practically applied to actual buildings to achieve a safer and more comfortable building structure. The emphasis has been especially on the active and hybrid type structural response control systems which resulted in the 'first in the world' practical application of an active mass driver (AMD) system to an actual building in 1989. At present, three different types of active or hybrid control systems, which are applicable for earthquakes of moderate to high intensities, as well as strong winds, have been successfully developed and practically applied: (1) Active mass driver (AMD) system; (2) Active variable stiffness (AVS) system; (3) Hybrid mass damper (HMD) system. In this report, the R & D motivation of the authors and the development are first described. Then the developed passive control systems concentrating on the application to high-rise buildings are explained. Finally an introduction to the basic principles and the composition of the active control systems, and the control effects on the buildings' response based on actual observations, as well as the numerical simulation under real earthquakes and strong winds, are presented.