Static Vehicle Loading

Static vehicle, lane, and knife edge loading types are provided for many regional codes of practice. These currently include: AASHTO LFD & LRFD (USA), BD21/97 (UK), 21/01 (UK), BD37/88 (UK), 37/01 (UK), BRO94 and BRO2002 Vehicle and Classification loads and BRO Train loading (Sweden), Korean, Israel,  Norway, HK (Hong Kong), Australia, China, Eurocode vehicle and train loading, Finland, India, New Zealand, Poland and South Africa. Additional loading types are being added all the time.

Train loading options for many international bridge design codes including AASHTO and Eurocode are provided.

Load trains

• Load trains can be created using a compound load facility. 

Abnormal loading

• Abnormal load generators are included.

Moving load generators

• Vehicle and train loadings can be used either on their own or with a moving load generator to automatically create the required set of loadcases as a loading type makes its way across a bridge.

Significant amounts of time can be saved with the optional Vehicle Load Optimisation facility which generates the most adverse combination of live loading. The interface consists of a series of dialogs requiring only the input of a few parameters to enable an optimised load pattern to be generated in accordance with a chosen code of practice.

Envelopes and Combinations

A key feature of LUSAS Bridge is the Basic, Smart and Code-specific load combination facilities which allow manual or fully automated assembly of design load combinations. From these, envelopes, contour and deflected shape plots, and results graphs can be readily obtained for any loadcase under consideration.

• Basic load combinations allow for manual definition of loadcases and load factors.
• Envelopes of multiple loadcases create maximum and minimum results.
• The Smart Combinations facility automatically generates maximum and minimum load combinations from the applied loadings to take account of adverse and relieving effects. This enables the number of combinations and envelopes required to model a bridge to be substantially reduced. Absolute maximum envelopes are included.
• Load Combination Wizards use predefined bridge load cases for country-specific design codes and help automate the definition of load combinations for bridges. When used in conjunction with a design code template, combinations of load combinations are automatically created to give the resultant maximum and minimum ULS or SLS loadcases.

Predefined bridge loadcases for design codes help to automate the definition of load combinations. When used in conjunction with a design code template, combinations of load combinations are automatically created to give the resultant maximum and minimum ULS or SLS loadcases.

Single and Multiple Stage Prestress and Post Tensioning

Single and multiple tendon prestress wizards calculate equivalent nodal loading due to tendon prestressing or post-tensioning and assign these forces automatically to a model. Computation of tendon forces can be carried out in accordance with AASHTO-LRFD, Eurocode EN1992, China JTG D62-2004 and other design codes. 

• The ability to input many hundreds of tendons in one analysis that can be assigned to many hundreds of loadcases is made easy by the use of the multiple tendon prestress wizard. Through a series of dialogs, the wizard simplifies the definition of tendon profiles and properties.
• Elastic shortening losses can be specified for multiple stressing stages – useful for staged construction. Locally defined tendon profiles can be used anywhere in the model and any number of times. One very useful feature allows the tendon profile to be viewed in real-time as it is defined. Tendon material properties including short and long term losses can be specified. 
• The tendon can then be easily assigned to one or more line features on the model and, more importantly, to one or more loadcases at the same time.

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