Four common forms of membrane structure

Membrane structure buildings are more common and have diverse shapes. In fact, the morphological changes of membrane structure buildings are mostly based on four forms: umbrella, ridge valley, saddle, and arch.

1. Umbrella shaped

Umbrella membrane structure is also a common form of tension membrane structure. The characteristic of this structure is that the peripheral position of the membrane unit is relatively low, and it is mostly fixed on rigid side beams or flexible side cables; There is one or more high points in the middle of the membrane unit, usually through independent pillars and flying pillars. Or achieve support for the suspension ring; The entire membrane surface is conical. In order to avoid excessive internal pressure on the membrane material near high points, when the membrane unit has a large span, a high-level point and boundary support point can be set to change the internal force transmission path of the structure, avoiding stress concentration on the membrane material. The umbrella shaped surface can also be used upside down in engineering.

2. Ridge valley shape

The structure of the spinal chordae is a parallel chordae arranged between two high points and a parallel chordae arranged between two low points. Alternating high and low points, with a wavy surface; The membrane surface between the notochord and the chordae valley forms a negative Gaussian curvature surface. When the structural span is large or the load is large, some horizontal reinforcement cables can be arranged between beams and valley cables. The structural planes of the ridge valley membrane are mostly rectangular. Denver International Airport in the United States and Canada Square in Canada are both typical ridge valley membrane buildings.

3. Saddle shaped

A saddle surface is a typical form of reciprocal surface, surrounded by four non coplanar and connecting edges. Among these four corners, there are usually two diagonal points as high points (HP) and the other two diagonal points as low points (LP). The edge components of the saddle membrane structure can be concrete beams or spatial Steel Trusses, forming a so-called rigid boundary; Alternatively, edge cables can form flexible boundaries by applying greater pre tension. Due to its ability to better adapt to the deformation of the membrane surface and avoid wrinkles during installation and loading, flexible boundaries are more commonly used.

4. Arches

Arch supported membrane structure uses arches as a continuous support point for membrane materials, and the structural plane is mostly circular or approximately elliptical. When the span is large, an orthogonal cable network is often arranged between the middle arch and the lower edge components. Arch supported membrane structures are mainly used in enclosed buildings.

Although the shapes and shapes of the four membrane structures mentioned above are different, they follow very similar principles. They all form a high point and a low point inside the membrane structure through rigid support components. In this case, multiple angles of the membrane structure parking shed will not be on the same plane. So when we build, we can choose the appropriate membrane structure according to our actual needs.