Hi everyone, I'm working on chec

[useftanz]

Hi everyone,

I'm working on checking the capacity of a steel truss, but I'm facing a challenge. The truss consists of different sections—one section is made up of steel triangles, while another section is empty (as shown in the photo).
Is there a way to accurately determine the capacity of this type of truss configuration? Any insights or recommendations would be appreciated!

 

[Lomarandil]

Oh, that is unique.

It's essentially a warren truss. Where the bottom chord is a pretty distinct flat bar member,the top chord is a pretty distinct member (double channel?) and the diagonals are the two edges of the triangle. The fact that the triangle is solid is a bit of a red herring, except that it improves the buckling resistance of the compression diagonal.

Is there a way to accurately determine the capacity -- of course. But it may not be very important to precisely determine the capacity of the triangle diagonals -- I suspect you may find that some conservative assumptions prove they are adequate for enough load such that other elements of the truss govern.

 

[useftanz]

Yes, double channels, each welded to the triangular solid plate.
I believe the best approach is to assume the triangular solid web doesn't exist and proceed with the design for the hollow area.

 

[cliff234]

That's a strange looking truss/joist! If I had to design something like this I would have flipped the solid section and put the base of the triangular solid sections on top.

Is there a way to identify who designed these trusses//joists, so you could call them? (Can you get the contract documents or shop drawings? Are there any tags on these members identifying the manufacturer (similar to joist tags on all joists in the U.S.)?

 

[useftanz]

No, unfortunately. There are no shop drawings, and no tags on the trusses.