Novel steel hinge connection for pedestrian timber bridges : Novel steel hinge connection for pedestrian timber bridges

Abstract: This study focuses on exploring a novel timber-to-timber joint using a steel hinge connection (in this work also referred to as door-hinge joint) for pedestrian timber bridges. To conduct the cross-section design of the structural bridge members, a numerical model was developed to determine the internal forces. The member cross-sections were then designed according to the Eurocode standards. The door-hinge joint underwent testing in two scenarios: pure bending and combined bending and compression (i.e. a knee joint setup). The results indicated that the joint provides ductile behaviour due to its steel components. In the pure bending test, the timber was the limiting factor. For the knee joint setup, the strength was limited by the steel components (plate and screws). The joint exhibited poor stiffness, resulting in significant deflections. To address this, suggestions were made to increase the thickness of the plate or change the steel profile (eg. U-profile). Additionally, removing the 2 mm gap between dowel diameter and inner pipe diameter should further increase stiffness.