Effect of Structural Parameters on the Stiffness of Truss Structure

Abstract

Stiffness is an important parameter during the designment of truss structure. A finite element model (FEM) was put forward to calculate the stiffness of truss structure. The proposed FEM was compared with the universal theoretical model to verify the rationality of FEM. The verified FEM was further used to research the effect of structural parameters on the stiffness of truss structure. The variations of stiffness with length of truss, size of cross section, and spacing of cell were illustrated. The calculated results showed a nonlinear relationship between stiffness and structural parameter. At last, the underlying mechanism of the nonlinear relationship was discussed.