Development of design spectra for actively controlled wall-frame buildings

Preliminary design of a structure controlled by active bracing or mass dampers to withstand seismic motion or high winds requires rapid means of analysis and estimates. A response spectrum technique applied to simplified models of complex structures can provide such means. The spectra required for preliminary evaluation of a controlled structure include, besides the usual response parameters (displacement, acceleration, base shear), the control resource parameters, such as the size and capacity of hydraulic actuators; power requirements; and energy consumption. This paper presents an approach to develop design spectra based on the analogy of behavior of wall frame structures with the behavior of shear-flexural cantilever beams treated by the continuum approach. This approach is verified numerically and experimentally using simplified parameters representing the structures. The same approach is further used to develop typical response and resource spectra using simulated ground motions according to a current seismic code. Several recommendations on efficiency of control of wall-frame structures are presented using information from the design spectra developed herein.