THAPAR UNIVERSITY

CONSTRUCTION OF A TRUSS BRIDGE

(ENGINEERING MECHANICS FIRST YEAR PROJECT)
(Final weightage: 10 marks for each student)

Problem Statement: To construct a model bridge of 300 mm span to support a concentrated load at the
centre. The width of the bridge is 100 mm. The point of application of load should be level with side
supports.

Objective: The project aims at giving the student a basic insight into the practical aspects of Engineering.
It is expected that they learn to observe and appreciate the importance of joints and modes of failure of a
truss structure.

Materials: The bridge shall be made using wood of 6 mm thickness for struts (members in compression)
and GI wire will be used for ties (members in tension). The material will be provided to you at the time of
fabrication.

Design Guidelines: Following are some technical design guidelines:

a) There is no restriction on quantity of steel wire and wood. However, keep in mind that the
cost must be minimized. All the zero force members must be constructed from wood.
b) It is advised that the number of members meeting at a joint does not exceed four
(SINCE THE CONSTRUCTION OF JOINT IS A COMPLEX PROCESS). However,
this is not a hard and fast rule
c) The height of the truss shall be kept between 100-150 mm.

General Instructions: The students shall follow the following instructions:

a) The students of each tutorial group shall be divided into five sub-groups. Each of these sub-
groups will be allotted a laboratory time slot of 2 hours for construction and testing of the
bridge.
b) While coming to your lab, each sub-group must:
i) bring a detailed analysis of your proposed truss, showing the compression and
tension members
ii) Fill and submit the standard design and performance report (attached with this
handout). Please note that only the “Load at collapse (P)” and “Mode of
failure” shall be filled in the lab.
c) The bridge will be tested upto collapse (during the lab session itself) after the construction.

Evaluation: Each bridge shall be evaluated based on the following parameters:

a) Time efficiency: It must be capable of being built during the allocated time.
b) Failure load: Each bridge will be tested to failure and the actual collapse load will be noted.
The mode of failure should also be observed and recorded.
c) Economy: Compression members are generally more expensive as compared to tension
members; hence the quantity of wood to be used should be minimized. The cost of the bridge
shall be calculated by adding following costs:
Wood: Rs 1200/metre
Wire: Rs 300/metre
Miscellaneous (cost of wire for joints, drilling etc. and overhead costs): 10% of total material cost
 FORMAT FOR PROJECT REPORT

Each sub-group is required to submit a report (not exceeding one page) at the end of the bridge testing.
The report should indicate the description of the design (in a few lines). The compression and tension
members should be clearly identified and shown diagrammatically. The report should also include:

a) Collapse load (to be filled in lab)

b) Mode of collapse (to be filled in lab)
c) Cost of the bridge (to be calculated beforehand)

d) Efficiency of the bridge = X 100

A SAMPLE PROJECT REPORT SHALL BE UPLOADED ON

THE WEBSITE.