a method of measuring the horizontal forces generated by bridge bearings.

a method of determining the forces generated by various types of structural bearings in service is described. it makes use of a rubber pad, having negligible shear resistance under small displacements, to transmit the forces to transducers mounted in a rigid framework beneath the bearing. the results of laboratory tests, using a pair of laminated rubber bearings to provide the input force, show that although small losses occur, the ratio of the force measured by the system to the input force does not fall below 0.92, regardless of the angle of application of the input force. it is concluded that for unidirectional forces the system may be besigned to give a maximum error of 4 per cent on the measured force and for multidirectional forces 10 per cent. the magnitude of those errors may be reduced if the temperature response of the transducers and the stiffness of the rubber pad are compensated for. in practical applications, the overall accuracy of the forces measured by the system can be better than + or - 3 per cent. (a).