A1 - FRANCO

I have designed my first bridge following the use of triangles.  The reason is, that with the advantage of their strength and sustainability if done properly, less material would be necessary for the needed amount of strength, which would also make it a more affordable bridge.

My bridge began using a lot more material and smaller similar shapes of triangles.  As I modified the bridge and its angles, I was able to gradually remove material used and make it more economic.

Current bridge cost:  $354,192.01
Estimated bridge cost (future improvements included):  $425,000.00

During the making of this design I learned that not only does the length of a rod matter, but also do the angles and it can significantly affect the way the force sustained is distributed.

A1-O'CALLAGHAN

Goals for my bridge design:

• Truss design consist mostly of triangles
• Have a general square shape for the bridge
• Have a two lane truss bridge that did not include pillars 
•  Keep the cost down 
•  Use as few members as possible and still be considered steady

                                                            View of bridge in building mode









                                                                   Image of truck in center of bridge


                                                   Load Test Results

My design originally changed from when I started the design process.  I am still getting used to WPBD the program, so a lot of things I did were experimental.  I started out thinking that a lot of small triangles would be best, but I soon realized that it was also more expensive.  I basically tried to come up with the cheapest bridge I could that supported the truck.  I learned that members couldn’t be too thin and I had to find a happy medium in the length of each member.  Overall, I am happy with the design since it is my first time designing a bridge. 

The cost estimate turned out to be $438,282.34.  I played around with a few other designs and out of the three bridges I saved, this one was the cheapest.  I hope to eventually decrease this to under $400,000 but I feel this will take practice and patience.  

Overall, I learned how to use WPBD and how to build a beginner bridge.  I found the load test results to be very useful and the truck simulator to really help me understand why my bridge was failing at certain points.  In the future I hope to build upon my knowledge so I can improve my bridge building skills and create more efficient and stronger designs.