KALINGA STATE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1
DEFLECTION OF DETERMINATE TRUSSES
ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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INTRODUCTION

Structures, like all other physical bodies, deform and change shape when subjected to forces. Other
common causes of structural deformation include temperature changes and support settlements.
However, the deflections of civil engineering structures under the action of usual design loads are known
to be small in relation to both the overall dimensions and member lengths.

Examples which demonstrate the value of deflection analysis include (Tartaglione, 1991):
1. Wind forces on tall buildings have been known to produce excessive lateral deflections that have
resulted in cracked windows and walls, as well as discomfort to the occupants.
2. Large floor deflections in a building are aesthetically unattractive, do not inspire confidence, may
crack brittle finishes or cause other damage and can be unsafe.
3. Floor systems are often designed to support motor-driven machines or sensitive equipment
which will run satisfactorily only if the support system undergoes limited deflections.
4. Large passenger discomfort, and be unsafe.
5. Deflection control and camber behavior of prestressed concrete beams during various stages of
construction and loading are vital for successful design.
6. Deflection computations serve to establish the vibration, and shock environment – inclusive of
seismic design loads.

If the structure deflections disappear and the structure regains its original shape when the actions
causing the deformations are removed, the deformations are termed elastic deformations. The
permanent deformations of structure are referred to as inelastic or plastic deformations. This course will
focus on linear elastic deformations. Such deformations vary linearly with applied loads and the principle
of superposition is valid for such structures. Furthermore, since the deflections are expected to be small,
deflections are measured with respect to the original, undeformed or reference geometry.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

After this lesson, you are able to:

- develop a criteria for assessing the initial stability of truss type structures
- present methods for determining the axial forces in the members of statically determinate trusses
- present methods for computing the displaced configuration of a truss

LEARNING INPUT

VIRTUAL WORK
Virtual work procedures can produce a single
displacement component at any desired location on the structure. To calculate the desired
displacement , a dummy or virtual load (normally of unit magnitude) is applied at the location and in the
direction of the desired displacement component. Forces associated with this virtual force are term .
The structure force systems due to actual or real applied forces have been referred to as the and do
not use a subscript.

Principle of Virtual Forces:

a deformable structure is in equilibrium under a virtual system of forces, then the external
work done by the virtual forces going through the real displacements equals the internal

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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virtual work done by the virtual stress resultants going through the real displacement
differentials.

Principle of Virtual Displacements

If a deformable structure is in equilibrium and remains in equilibrium while it is subject to a
virtual distortion, the external virtual work done by the external forces acting on the structure
is equal to the internal virtual work done by the stress resultants.

The virtual work principles (forces and displacements) are based on conserving the change in energy
due to the applied virtual load or displacement.

Illustrative problem 01:

The plane truss shown, assume and
Determine: The horizontal displacement ( at .

Solution:
Step 1: Evaluate the member forces and reactions using Method of Joints or Method of Sections.

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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Step 2: To determine the vertical deflection at joint C remove the externally applied load system and
apply a unit load only in a horizontal direction at joint C as shown in the figure. Use the method of
sections or joint as before to determine the magnitude and sense of the unknown member forces (i.e.
the u forces).

The horizontal deflection at C,

∑

This is better calculated in tabular form

CROSS P
LENGTH MODULU
MEMBER SECTION FORCES u
(L) S (E)
(A) (Kn)
ab 3 A E -10 0 0
bc 3 A E -40 0 0
cd 3 A E -50 -1 150
da 3 A E 0 0 0
ac 4.24 A E 56.57 1.41 338.2
∑ 488.2

Hence the horizontal deflection is

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
Fabrication Errors—(Lack-of-fit) Changes in Temperature
During fabrication it is not unusual for a member The effects of temperature change in members
length to be slightly too short or too long and can also be accommodated in a similar manner; in
assembly is achieved by forcing members in to this case the δL term is related to the coefficient of
place. The effect of this can be accommodated thermal expansion for the material, the change in
very easily in this method of analysis by adding temperature and the original length,
additional terms relating to each member for which
lack-of-fit applies. The δL term for the relevant
members is equal to the magnitude of the error in Where:
length, i.e. ΔL where negative values relate to
members which are too short and positive values
to members which are too long.

Illustrative problem 02

Determine the vertical deflection at point d

assuming that the existing loading and that
member bc is too short by 0.08 inches and
member cd is too long by 0.06 inches and the
temperature increase of for all members.
, and .

Since there are no external forces applied in the truss, there

is no need to determine the value of P. The corresponding
virtual force system is shown in Fig. 1.

member L (in.) u
ab 214.7 0.090711 0 -1.12 -0.102
bc 214.7 0.090711 -0.08 -1.12 -0.012
cd 135.7 0.057333 0.06 0.707 0.083
da 135.7 0.057333 0 0.707 0.041
bd 96 0.04056 0 2 0.081
∑ 0.091
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Illustrative problem 03
Determine the vertical component of the displacement at joint and horizontal deflection at joint of the figure
shown. Take and for all the members.

Solution:
For the vertical deflection at G,
Step 1: From the previous lesson, using Method of Joints and Method of Sections, the is

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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Step 2: For vertical deflection, apply a vertical unit load at point G. Using Methods of Joints and
Sections, the is

Tabulate all the data.

L A E P
member u

ab 3200 1,300.00 200,000.00 -106400 -0.8 -1.31 1.048

ah 2500 1,300.00 200,000.00 83130 0.625 0.799 0.499375
bc 4030 1,300.00 200,000.00 -95710 -1.44 -1.484 2.13696
hc 5320 1,300.00 200,000.00 27930 0.285 0.571 0.162735
hg 3500 1,300.00 200,000.00 64750 1.06 0.872 0.92432
bh 2000 1,300.00 200,000.00 -21000 0.285 -0.162 -0.04617
cg 4000 1,300.00 200,000.00 0 1 0 0
cd 4030 1,300.00 200,000.00 -95710 -1.44 -1.484 2.13696
cf 5320 1,300.00 200,000.00 27930 0.285 0.571 0.162735
gf 3500 1,300.00 200,000.00 64750 1.06 0.872 0.92432
df 2000 1,300.00 200,000.00 -21000 0.285 -0.162 -0.04617
de 3200 1,300.00 200,000.00 -106400 -0.8 -1.31 1.048
fe 2500 1,300.00 200,000.00 83130 0.625 0.799 0.499375
∑ 9.45044

The vertical deflection at joint G due to loading is

∑( )

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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For the horizontal deflection at E,
Since the values of P forces are already determined in Step 1 (for the vertical deflection at
G), all we need to do is to apply a horizontal unit load at point E . Using Methods of Joints
and Sections,

Tabulating all the data,

L A E P
member u

ab 3200 1,300.00 200,000.00 -106400 0 -1.31 0

ah 2500 1,300.00 200,000.00 83130 1 0.799 0.799
bc 4030 1,300.00 200,000.00 -95710 0 -1.484 0
hc 5320 1,300.00 200,000.00 27930 0 0.571 0
hg 3500 1,300.00 200,000.00 64750 1 0.872 0.872
bh 2000 1,300.00 200,000.00 -21000 0 -0.162 0
cg 4000 1,300.00 200,000.00 0 0 0 0
cd 4030 1,300.00 200,000.00 -95710 0 -1.484 0
cf 5320 1,300.00 200,000.00 27930 0 0.571 0
gf 3500 1,300.00 200,000.00 64750 1 0.872 0.872
df 2000 1,300.00 200,000.00 -21000 0 -0.162 0
de 3200 1,300.00 200,000.00 -106400 0 -1.31 0
fe 2500 1,300.00 200,000.00 83130 1 0.799 0.799
∑ 3.342

The horizontal deflection at joint E due to loading is

∑( )

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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POSTTEST

After reading this lesson, you are encouraged to try solving this practice problem.
*** this is an exercise problem, no need to submit a picture or scanned copy of your calculations.***

Determine the horizontal and vertical deflection component of joint A by Virtual Work Method.
Truss properties:

Ans.

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN
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FOLLOW-UP WORK
- This activity is to be done by group. Additional instructions are posted in your Google Classroom.

The gable truss shown has variable cross sections, such that for top chord members,
for bottom chord members, for diagonal members, and
for vertical members and . Determine the magnitude and direction of the resultant
deflection at joint and the vertical deflection at joint .

REFERENCES

W.M.C. McKenzie. 2006. Examples in Structural Analysis. Taylor & Francis. N.Y., USA.
V.I. Besavilla. 1999. Structural Engineering and Construction. VIB Publishing. Cebu City, Philippines.

Then He said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds
of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions
Luke 12:15

STRUCTURAL THEORY 1:
CHAPTER 3: LESSON 1 –TRUSS DEFLECTIONS ENGR. ELIZABETH C. LUMIOAN