Base isolation

Abstract

Conventionally, seismic design of building structures is based on the concept of increasing the resistance capacity of the structures against earthquakes by employing, for example, the use of shear walls, braced frames, or moment-resistant frames. However, these traditional methods often result in high floor accelerations for stiff buildings, or large interstory drifts for flexible buildings. Because of this, the building contents and nonstructural components may suffer significant damage during a major earthquake, even if the structure itself remains basically intact. This is not tolerable for buildings whose contents are more costly and valuable than the buildings themselves. High-precision production factories are one example of buildings that contain extremely costly and sensitive equipment. Additionally, hospitals, police and fire stations, and telecommunication centers are examples of facilities that contain valuable equipment and should remain operational immediately after an earthquake.