PRESTRESSING TENSEGRITY SYSTEMS — APPLICATION TO MULTIPLE SELFSTRESS STATE STRUCTURES

Abstract

Stress control is a major issue in the development of prestressed structures like the tensegrity systems that gain from it equilibrium and stability. In this paper, we present a simple method for adjusting the whole set of normal forces in this kind of structure, based on a combination of influences determined from the unit variations of rest lengths for a reduced set of active cables. According to an elementary criterion, tension and compression forces are kept in a reduced domain during the implementation stage in order to avoid unwanted transitory stress levels. The process is then simulated to retrieve the modifications for actual lengths that are to be implemented in the correct order. Finally, we describe the application of this method on a 1:1 scale double layer tensegrity grid.