US 4,901,486 AGranted

Elasto-plastic damper

AssigneeKajima Corporation

InventorsTakuju Kobori, Shunichi Yamada, Shigeru Ban, Koji Ishii, Isao Nishimura, Masatoshi Ishida, Kuniaki Sato, Yasuo Takenaka, Shozo Maeda, Jun Tagami

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Abstract

An elasto-plastic damper is adapted to be used in a structure, such as a building and other facilities, for absorbing vibration energy created by earthquake tremors and other ground vibrations. The damper is a centrally bulged and generally cone-shaped hollow body of revolution so that its section modulus changes substantially proportional to a bending moment created in the damper body due to horizontal stresses, thus permitting a maximum degree of deformability. This elasto-plastic damper is compact in size and demonstrates a high degree of vibrational energy absorbability.

Claims8

Dependent claims

An elasto-plastic damper means adapted to protect structures by attenuating seismic tremors comprising:

a steel, substantially cone shaped, load bearing damper having a base and an apex, adapted to support and to space a first member of a structure apart from a second member of a structure;
said damper being pivotally secured to said first member and integrally secured to said second member;
and said damper being elastically deformable responsive to seismic tremors of a a magnitude to stress said said damper within its elastic limit and being plastically deformable responsive to seismic tremors of a magnitude to stress said damper beyond its elastic limit.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.