A machine belt squat is a piece of equipment designed to allow the performance of squats while loading weight on the lifter's hips using a belt. The purpose of this investigation was to determine if belt squats differ from back squats in activation of the primary movers, and to determine the predictive capabilities of back squat load, training status, and anthropometric data on belt squat load....

The present work intends to introduce a domain-specific sketch method for modeling and analysis of forms and structures concurrently. The approach adopted particularly addresses architects, aiming to provide a natural environment for them to present and appraise structural configurations of different truss systems by means of sketching. This is achieved by developing Sketch-based Modeling and A...

These days there is an unprecedented rise in the number of lattice towers due to an ever increasing demand in communication. Lattice towers are 3D space frames that for design are conventionally analyzed as 2D trusses. For safety and economy, these designs need to be more rigorously analyzed considering them as 3D frames. In this study, two lattice towers of heights 18m and 40 have been analyze...

Engineers often decide to measure structures upon signs of damage to determine its extent and its location. Measurement locations, sensor types and numbers of sensors are selected based on judgment and experience. Rational and systematic methods for evaluating structural performance can help make better decisions. This paper proposes strategies for supporting two measurement tasks related to st...

We describe a method to construct precise truss structures from non-precise commodity parts. Trusses with precision in the order of micrometers, such as the truss of a space telescope, can be accomplished with precisely machined truss connection systems. This approach is expensive, heavy, and prone to failure, e.g., when a single element is lost. In the past, we have proposed a novel concept in...

fundamental engineering concepts through a course in statics. Statics problems usually require the student to draw planar truss and other free-body diagrams (FBDs). In civil and mechanical engineering, visual and spatial thoughts are essential for the correct absorption of fundamental concepts. By relying on visual aids as opposed to only using the verbal channel of acquiring knowledge, the cog...

A new hybrid algorithm of Particle Swarm Optimization and Genetic Algorithm (PSOGA) is presented to get the optimum design of truss structures with discrete design variables. The objective function chosen in this paper is the total weight of the truss structure, which depends on upper and lower bounds in the form of stress and displacement limits. The Particle Swarm Optimization basically model...

Design optimization of structures with discrete and continuous search spaces is a complex optimization problem with lots of local optima. Metaheuristic optimization algorithms, due to not requiring gradient information of the objective function, are efficient tools for solving these problems at a reasonable computational time. In this paper, the Doppler Effect-Mean Euclidian Distance Threshold ...

In this paper, MATLAB code for a recently developed meta-heuristic methodology, the vibrating particles system (VPS) algorithm, is presented. The VPS is a population-based algorithm which simulates a free vibration of single degree of freedom systems with viscous damping. The particles gradually approach to their equilibrium positions that are achieved from current population and historically b...

Pyramidal truss sandwich cores with relative densities 4q in the range 1–10% have been made from carbon fiber reinforced polymer laminates using a snap-fitting method. The measured quasi-static uniaxial compressive strength increased with increasing 4q from 1 to 11 MPa over the relative density range investigated here. A robust face-sheet/ truss joint design was developed to suppress truss– fac...