Hybrid testing of masonry structures subjected to seismic loading

The combination of experiments and numeric description in a test makes it possible to realistically investigate almost any type of system subjected to dynamic loading without requiring the extremely expensive device of a shaking table. With the numeric approach it is possible to examine the behaviour of even very large and complex structures, thus reducing the experimental investigations to the essential part of the system - for example, bracing masonry walls. This test method has proved to be very helpful, particularly for the investigation of seismic loading, and it allows the synchronous examination of several force and displacement variables (horizontal, vertical, rotational). A new laboratory is presented for the investigation of full-scale building structures up to three storeys high.