Moment Connection for Quick Assembly of Timber Portal Frame Buildings: Theory and Validation
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 140, Issue 1
Abstract
This paper provides an overview of a moment connection for use in prefabricated timber portal frame buildings. The connection, known as the quick-connect joint, uses rods housed in timber sleeves that are placed on the outside of the main portal members to create a semirigid moment connection similar to those used in steel portal frames. Timber sleeves are connected to the main portal members using fully threaded, self-drilling timber screws that have high strength and stiffness characteristics. These characteristics limit connection slip and limit joint rotation. The quick-connect connection allows manufacture to take place offsite, thus reducing onsite plant and labor costs. A proposed design procedure is introduced in this paper. This procedure uses individual component deflections to calculate the overall rotation of members at the joint. Accurate rotation predictions allow for more efficient member design. Full-scale testing of a timber beam to steel column, and timber beam to timber column knee joint, is discussed. Results show that the quick-connect joint does not constrain the portal member sizes. Full-scale test results are used to verify the proposed design procedure. Test and analytical results show good correlation. The authors believe the quick-connect connection allows for more efficient and competitive design, manufacture, and erection of timber portal frame buildings by providing a joint and design procedure that is as easily used as those in the steel industry.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the New Zealand Structural Timber Innovation Company (STIC) for providing financial support for this project. Furthermore, they would like to thank Wurth New Zealand for providing the screws required for the full-scale testing.
References
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 140 • Issue 1 • January 2014
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 28, 2012
Accepted: Sep 6, 2012
Published online: Sep 10, 2012
Published in print: Jan 1, 2014
Discussion open until: Feb 16, 2014
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