Acceptability Vibration Criterion for Floors with Walking Occupants

• Published in: Structural Engineering, Mechanics and Computation pp. 913 - 917
• Main Authors: de Andrade, C.F., de Andrade Filho, J.C., de Andrade, J.C.
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Science 2001
• ISBN: 9780080439488; 0080439489
• DOI: 10.1016/B978-008043948-8/50101-6

Vibrations imposed by the action of normal occupant activities may affect the structural serviceability of many modern building structures, in terms of causing physical or psychological discomfort and general distress to occupants. During the past years, a number of research programs have been directed toward the establishment of serviceability criteria for the evaluation of the dynamic behavior of floor systems under the action of human activities. Several studies are performed attempting to establish and relate the levels of structural vibration to human comfort, trying to identify imperceptible, perceptible, tolerable, annoying, intolerable, or uncomfortable vibrations. It is generally recognized that most of these procedures—using either large, or general, or small specialized available dynamic analysis computer programs—are often time-consuming, not easily understood, and promptly applied by inexperienced engineers, and, in many instances, inappropriate in routine design. This chapter discusses a simple and straightforward procedure to evaluate the dynamic behavior of floor systems under normal occupant walking activities, based on a design criterion that the fundamental frequency of the floor system be greater than a specified constant limiting value. The proposed serviceability criterion provides evidence that rational simplified design rules for the evaluation of the performance of a given floor system to an acceptable and confident degree can be developed without the need for elaborate computations.