Connector for timber walls (X-shaped steel plate connector with curved extremities)

This patented anchoring system is ideally used in timber construction. Its special shape and material are ideal to connect wood walls or to anchor them to concrete foundations, even in high seismic risk areas. This invention is an X-shaped steel plate connector with curved extremities. It can be used to anchor the base of wood walls to foundations or to connect wall panels. The device is optimized to resist static and seismic action, since it has elevated energy dissipation characteristics during earthquakes. The system uses the properties of steel by concentrating the dissipation of energy on the plate: this drastically reduces or completely prevents bearing stress in wood which would normally take place after cyclic events, causing loss of mechanic performance in conventional connectors. The design of the plates has been optimized for fast production with minimal scraps, from a single sheet of steel.

Applications

Construction, Wood wall anchoring, Seismic construction, Connection between wall and foundation, Vertical Connection between wall panels, Horizontal connection between wall and slab.