Nonlinear Field Analysis of Structural Nets

Analytical procedures are presented for determining displacements and forces in a two-way network of prestressed cables subjected to static, out-of-plane loadings. An efficient and direct open-form technique, the walk-through method is used to solve the governing difference equation for a statically determinate net. This method is an improvement over those based on the solution to simultaneous equations in that considerably less calculation time is required. An iteration procedure which utilizes the walk-through method is introduced for the analysis of indeterminate networks in which the nonlinear effects cannot be neglected. Rapid convergence is obtained for a variety of conditions, some of which are highly discontinuous. The numerical examples illustrate an important advantage of the above procedures—a single computer program with only minor changes can be used to solve the various analysis and design problems associated with structural nets.