Experimental study on the effects of seismic retrofit using wooden blocks for existing timber houses

Abstract

The wooden blocks made of the plywood using timber from thinning were devised to build masonry walls. The one of usage of the wooden blocks is the seismic retrofitting for the existing-timber houses that have inferior earthquake-resistant capacity. In this paper, the experimental results conducted in order to clarify the effect of the seismic retrofit using the wooden blocks are described. The two timber-frame specimens are reinforced by the wall that is built by single-piled wooden blocks. The another one is reinforced by the wall that is built by randompiled wooden blocks. The restoring characteristics of the timber-frame specimens are verified and the basic earthquake-resistant capacity of the seismic retrofitting method is clarified from the experimental results.