Design of an Earthquake Simulator Based on a Cable Driven Parallel Robot

Due to the fact that an earthquake cannot be predicted, the simulation of earthquakes using earthquake simulators is of great importance. An earthquake simulator is a device that reproduces the seismic waves that all generated by an earthquake. The aim of this work is present the design and prototyping earthquake simulator that simulates a real long-period ground motion earthquake with vertical displacement, according to the earthquake seismogram. A prototype of an earthquake simulator for simulating a real long-period ground motion during an earthquake with a vertical displacement, according to a given earthquake seismogram, was designed. A control interface of the prototype earthquake simulator is designed, to handle reproducing a given earthquake seismogram. The mobile platform of the earthquake simulator prototype performs translational motions in the direction of the X and Y axes due to the use of a cable driven parallel robot, and the vertical translational motion of the platform along the Z axis is performed by linear screw drives. Experimental tests of the earthquake simulator prototype were carried out, which confirmed the feasibility of reproducing long-period ground motion during an earthquake.