Concepedia

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to describe a process that may be used to alter the positions of the nodal points of a structural configuration in various ways. This would allow the relative sizes of the elements of the configuration to be modified in a manner that may suit the design requirements. For instance, the process can be used to improve the regularity of a braced dome by reducing the differences between the lengths of the elements. The process is referred to as the traviation process and is based on the minimisation of a numeric function. The material presented in the paper is introduced through simple examples.