Steel Buildings in Europe

Part 5: Detailed Design of Trusses 5 - 50 1 2 1 2 1 3 4 5 1 Truss members 2 Chord 3 Fillet weld 4 Half-V fillet weld 5 K-fillet weld Figure 5.6 Welded connection between truss members and chord When the chords are hollow sections (outside the scope of this guide), the connection using a gusset welded on the chord is also used. Direct welding of the diagonals and posts to the chords is also used; this requires profiling for connections to circular section chords. In the gusset connections described above, verification of the resistance of the bolted or welded connection clearly defined in EN 1993-1-8. However, verification of the resistance of the gusset plate is not. Verification of a gusset plate connection for the worked example is given in Appendix B. Special attention must be given to checking of the gussets, particularly those which have a large non stiffened part: many truss problems have been caused local buckling of the gusset plate. For example, in the connections in Figure 5.5(c), if the height of the flat chord web is insufficient for the angles making up the truss members to be connected near the web, the unstiffened part of the gusset and its stability must be examined carefully. Although hollow section trusses are not the subject of the present guide, note that EN 1993-1-8 devotes a Section to the design of welded connections of hollow sections. In the connections to the chords, slip must also be controlled (as indicated for continuous chords), in order to control displacements of the structural components, and, as a result, the distribution of forces if the structure is hyperstatic.