A unique and compressive offering for spliced precast/prestressed bridge girder analysis and design
LEAP CONSPLICE lets users design longer bridge spans with confidence using spliced girders. Spliced girders are a viable alternative for longer spans because of their low initial costs, improved safety considerations, and reduced maintenance costs. Girders are fabricated and transported in sections to the job site where there are joined together, resulting in a continuous span structure with an extended useful life. LEAP CONSPLICE focuses on the challenges associated with modeling the behavior of spliced girder bridges so that you can employ this technique with confidence.
Key Features:
Easy-to-use interface simplifies design
LEAP CONSPLICE makes the entry of project data convenient with an extremely user-friendly and efficient interface. The main screen is a tabbed dialog box which includes Project Information, Girder, Staging, Loads/Analysis, and Design tabs. At each tab, users enter the appropriate data and the results are instantly viewable. A variety of libraries are available to aid in the design process, including precast beam cross sections (I-girder, box beam, open box/bathtub beam, tee, or double tee), prestressing strands (stress-relieved or low relaxation), post-tensioning tendons, and AASHTO Standard and LRFD vehicle live loads.
Multiple design considerations
LEAP CONSPLICE allows for the analysis and design of spliced girder bridges which are comprised of spliced post-tensioned precast/prestressed bridge girders, CIP post-tensioned concrete slabs, and multi-span conventional prestressed/precast bridge girders with or without post-tensioning. Bridges may be single or multiple precast segment beams connected with CIP concrete splices, or CIP concrete slabs with prismatic or variable-depth longitudinal post-tensioning. Precast beam sections may be either prismatic or variable depth segments. Blocks may be specified at either or both ends of the beams.
Diverse post-tensioning options
Users may input friction and wobble coefficient, as well as anchor set. Post-tensioning may be single or multiple-stage, and jacking forces may be absolute or as a percentage of the ultimate stress. Tendon profiles may be linear, general, two-span parabolic, three-span parabolic or four-span parabolic patterns. Tendon elongations are computed automatically.
Comprehensive load analysis
LEAP CONSPLICE performs automatic moving live load analysis and generates influence lines for AASHTO Standard and LRFD vehicles. Users may specify uniform temperature changes (rise and fall), as well as positive and negative temperature gradients. The option also exists to specify multiple live loads into a single design live load in order to generate envelope results. Users may view individual load analysis and load combination/limit state results for any stage in either text or graphic format.
Complete structural analysis tools
Considerations include calculations for staged construction and time-dependent concrete behavior (strength gain, shrinkage, creep and elastic modulus), and the composite action between the girder and the slab for AASHTO LRFD, ACI 209R-82 and CEB-FIP90. LEAP CONSPLICE also checks for ultimate moment, shear and service load stresses according to AASHTO Standard and LRFD codes. LEAP CONSPLICE automatically computes (or the user may specify) ultimate creep coefficients, ultimate shrinkage strain, and/or ultimate steel relaxation. In addition, LEAP CONSPLICE allows the user to:
- Specify AASHTO Standard or LRFD load combinations and LRFD limit states;
- Deck slab overlay/supplemental thickness;
- Sacrificial slab wearing surface;
- Deck slab reinforcing, longitudinal beam reinforcing, or vertical shear reinforcing
User-defined checkpoints (POIs)
LEAP CONSPLICE performs transformed section analysis for prestressed strands, with the option to transform girder rebar. Deck removal analysis is also featured. Deflections are calculated at all locations, including user-defined check points. Other features include:
- Design of vertical shear reinforcement or specification check on user-defined reinforcement and spacing;
- Capacity/demand ratio for ultimate moment and cracking load;
- Auto-strand design and debonding for variable support conditions at release;
- Precast beam allowable stress check at release;
- Specify unique material properties for the deck slab, CIP splice, and precast beam elements;
- Stress checks at top and bottom of beam and top of slab;
- Lateral beam stability checks during lifting and transportation, computation of critical beam stresses, and factor of safety calculations during cracking, failure, and rollover.
User-friendly report generation and export
LEAP CONSPLICE reports can be generated stage-by-stage or for the full project, and encompass stress capacity, moment capacity, shear capacity, deflections and reactions. Users may print customized or full FEM analysis reports. Analysis results may be exported to spreadsheets, and girder elevations and cross-sections may be exported to DXF files.