20

A Computer-assisted Wind Load Evaluation

System for the Design of Cladding of Buildings:
A Case Study of Spatial Structures
Yasushi Uematsu
Tohoku University
Japan
1. Introduction
Thin sheet metal and/or membrane are often used for roof cladding of spatial structures
because of their strength and lightness (Noguchi et al., 2003). Being light and flexible, such
roofing materials are vulnerable to dynamic wind actions. Since wind pressures acting on
spatial structures vary spatially as well as in time, the design wind loads should be
determined based on the dynamic characteristics of wind pressures. Fatigue of cladding
elements, such as roofing material and its fixings, may play an important role in the wind
resistant performance of cladding systems, although it is seldom considered in the design.
Roof cladding is usually designed based on the worst peak pressure coefficients irrespective
of wind direction. The conventional codification provides a single peak design pressure
coefficient for each roof zone considering a nominal worst-case scenario. Neither the
probability distribution of the peak pressure coefficients nor the peaks other than the largest
one are considered. Hence, they are not suitable for fatigue and risk-consistent designs.
Building design has recently shifted to a performance-oriented one. Therefore, it is hoped to
develop a new methodology that provides the peak pressure coefficients according to
predetermined risk levels and the loading sequence for estimating the fatigue damage to
roof cladding and its fixings. Computer simulation of wind pressure time series may be
useful for this purpose.
Kumar and Stathopoulos (1998, 1999, 2001) proposed a novel simulating methodology that
generates both Gaussian and non-Gaussian wind pressure fluctuations on low building
roofs. Despite its simple procedure, the technique is successfully applied to fatigue analysis
as well as to the evaluation of extreme pressures in a risk-consistent way. Therefore, this
technology is used in this chapter and a simplification of this method is discussed. Gaussian
and non-Gaussian pressure fluctuations can be simulated from the statistics of wind
pressures, i.e. the mean, standard deviation, skewness, kurtosis and power spectrum. These
statistical values change with location as well as with many factors related to the structures
geometry and the turbulence characteristics of approach flow. For such a complicated
phenomenon, in which a number of variables involve, artificial neural networks (simply
neural networks or ANNs) can be used effectively. Artificial neural networks can capture a
complex, non-linear relationship via training with informative input-output example data
pairs obtained from computations and/or experiments. Among a variety of artificial neural

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networks developed so far, Cascade Correlation Learning Network (Fahlman and Lebiere,
1990) is applied to the present problem. It is a popular supervised learning architecture that
dynamically grows layers of hidden neurons of a fixed non-linear activation (e.g. sigmoid),
so that the topology (size and depth) can also be efficiently determined.
This chapter proposes a computer-assisted wind load evaluation system for the design of roof
cladding of spatial structures. Focus is on spherical domes and vaulted roofs, as typical shapes
of spatial structures. The composition of the system is schematically illustrated in Fig. 1. This
system provides wind loads for the design of cladding and its fixings without carrying out any
additional wind tunnel experiments. An aerodynamic database, artificial neural network and
time-series simulation technique are employed in the system. Finally, applications of the
system to risk-consistent design as well as to fatigue design are presented.
WIND LOADS FOR CLADDING
DESIGN (conventional method)
APPLICATIONS

Extreme value analysis

WIND TUNNEL
EXPERIMENTS

ROOF SHAPE,
FLOW CONDITION

DATABASE OF
WIND PRESSURE
TIME SERIES

DATABASE OF
STATISTICS OF
PRESSURE COEFFICIENTS

ARTIFICIAL NEURAL
NEURAL NETWORK
ARTIFICIAL
NETWORK

STATISTICAL VALUES
OF WIND PRESSURES

TIME SERIES SIMULATION

TECHNIQUE
TECHNIQUE

Probability
Probabilityofofpeak
peakvalues
values
RISK-CONSISTENT DESIGN

pressure
WindWind
pressure
loading
loading
cyclescycles
FATIGUE DESIGN

Rainflow count method

Fig. 1. Wind load evaluation system for the roof cladding of spatial structures
The wind load evaluation system proposed here is based on our previous studies (Uematsu
et al., 2005, 2007, 2008). It can be applied not only to spherical domes and vaulted roofs but
also to any other structures. However, such a system may be more useful for designing the
cladding of spatial structures because of its sensitivity to dynamic load effects of fluctuating
wind pressures. The spatial variation of statistical properties and the non-normality of
pressure fluctuations on spherical domes and vaulted roofs are less significant than those on
flat and gable roofs. Therefore, an ANN and a time-series simulation technique can be used
more efficiently for these structures. This is the reason why we focus on the cladding of
spherical domes and vaulted roofs in this chapter.

2. Aerodynamic dadabase
2.1 Wind tunnel experiments
Two series of wind tunnel experiments were carried out; one is for spherical domes and the
other is for vaulted roofs. The experimental conditions are somewhat different from each
other. The outline of the experimental conditions is presented here.
2.1.1 Spherical dome
The experiments were carried out in a closed-circuit-type wind tunnel with a working
section 18.1 m long, 2.5 m wide and 2.0 m high. Two kinds of turbulent boundary layers
simulating natural winds over typical open-country and urban terrains were generated;
these flows are respectively referred to as Flows II and IV in this chapter. The geometric

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431

scale of these flows ranges from 1/400 to 1/500, judging from the longitudinal integral scale
of turbulence.
The geometry of the wind tunnel model is schematically illustrated in Fig. 2(a). The
rise/span ratio (f/D) is varied from 0 to 0.5, while the eaves-height/span ratio (h/D) from 0
to 1. The span D of the wind tunnel model is 267 mm and the surface of the model is
nominally smooth. Each model is equipped with 433 pressure taps of 0.5 mm diameter, as
shown in Fig. 2(b). The pressure taps are connected to pressure transducers in parallel via 80
cm lengths of flexible vinyl tubing of 1 mm inside diameter. The compensation for the
frequency response of this pneumatic tubing system is carried out by using a digital filter,
which is designed so that the dynamic data up to approximately 500 Hz can be obtained
without distortion. The signals from the transducers are sampled in parallel at a rate of 1
kHz on each channel for a period of approximately 33 seconds. All measurements are made
at a wind velocity of Uref = 10 m/s at a reference height of Zref = 267 mm. The velocity scale is
assumed 1/5. The wind velocity Utop at the level of rooftop ranges from 5.3 to 10.2 m/s; the
corresponding Reynolds number Re, defined in terms of D and Utop, ranges from
approximately 9.4 104 to 1.8 105. The turbulence intensity Iu,top at the level of rooftop
ranges from 0.13 to 0.20 for Flow II and from 0.12 to 0.27 for Flow IV.
WIND

f/D = 0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.20, 0.50

h/D = 0, 1/16, , 16/16

WIND

h
y

D = 267mm

(a) Geometry (side view)

(b) Location of pressure taps (top view)

Fig. 2. Wind tunnel model and coordinate system (spherical domes)

2.1.2 Vaulted roof
The experiments were carried out in a closed-circuit-type wind tunnel with a working
section 18.9 m long, 2.6 m wide and 2.1 to 2.4 m high. Two kinds of turbulent boundary
layers similar to those used for spherical domes were generated; these flows are respectively
referred to as Flows II and IV in this chapter.
The geometry of the wind tunnel model is schematically illustrated in Fig. 3(a). The
rise/span ratio (f/D) is varied from 0.1 to 0.4, while the eaves-height/span ratio (h/D) from
1/30 to 20/30. The span D of the wind tunnel model is 150 mm and the length W is 300mm.
Each model is equipped with 228 pressure taps of 0.5 mm diameter, as shown in Fig. 3(b).
The turbulence intensity Iu,H at the mean roof height H is approximately 0.16 for Flow II and
approximately 0.19 for Flow IV.
The experimental procedure is the same as that for spherical domes except that the wind
direction is varied from 0 to 90o at a step of 5o.

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0o

f/D = 0.1, 0.2, 0.4

h/D = 1/30, 10/30, 20/30
y
f
z

90o

y O
D = 150mm
W = 300mm

(a) Geometry (side view)

(b) Location of pressure taps (top view)

Fig. 3. Wind tunnel model and coordinate system (vaulted roofs)

2.2 Database of the statistics of wind pressures
The data from the simultaneous pressure measurements are stored on a computer in the
form of pressure coefficient; the pressure coefficient Cp is defined in terms of the velocity
pressure qH (= 1/2UH2, with and UH being the air density and the wind velocity at the
mean roof height H, respectively). Then, the statistical values of pressure coefficients, i.e.
mean C p , standard deviation C p ' , maximum and minimum peaks, Cpmax and Cpmin, during

a full-scale period of 10 min, skewness Sk, kurtosis Ku and power spectrum Sp(f), with f being
the frequency, are computed. In the spherical dome case, the distributions of C p , C p ' , Cpmax,

Cpmin, Sk and Ku in the circumferential direction are smoothed by using a cubic spline
function. Furthermore, the values at two points that are symmetric with respect to the
centreline parallel to the wind direction are replaced by the average of the two values, which
makes the distribution symmetric with respect to the centreline. In the case of vaulted roofs,
the distributions along the roofs periphery are smoothed by using a cubic spline function.
Such a smoothing procedure may eliminate noisy errors included in the experimental data.
Sample results on C p are shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The smoothed data for all the cases tested
are stored in the database, together with the coordinates (x, y) of pressure taps, the values of
geometric parameters (i.e. f/D and h/D), and the turbulence intensity IuH of approach flow at
the mean roof height H and the wind direction (only for vaulted roofs).
The power spectrum Sp(f) is approximated by the following equation:

Sp ( f )

p2

f DH
= a1 exp c1

UH

f DH
+ a2 exp c 2
UH

(1)

where p is the standard deviation of pressure fluctuation; a1 and a2 are the position
constants and c1 and c2 are the shape constants. The first and second terms of the right-hand
side of Eq. (1) control the position and shape of Sp(f)/p2 at lower and higher frequencies,
respectively. Similar representation was used by Kumar and Stathopoulos (1998) for
pressures on low building roofs. In the above equation, however, the frequency f is reduced

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433

by DH , not by H. This is related to a three-dimensional effect of the flow around the roofs.
The values of the four constants are determined based on the least squares method applied
to the experimental data.
W

-1

-0.6

-1

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.6

-0.2

-0.2

(a) Before smoothing

(b) After smoothing

Fig. 4. Distributions of C p on a spherical dome (f/D = 0.1, h/D= 4/16, Flow II)

-0.4

6
8

-0.4

-0.4

-1.2

-0.4
-0.6
-1.0

90o

-0.4
-0.6
-1.0

-1.2

90o

C.L.
(a) Before smoothing

C.L.
(b) After smoothing

Fig. 5. Distributions of C p on a vaulted roof (f/D = 0.1, h/D= 1/30, Flow IV)
In the spherical dome case, the general shape of Sp(f)/p2 changes only slightly in the xdirection (Noguchi and Uematsu, 2004). Therefore, focus is on the variation of Sp(f)/p2 only
in the y-direction. The values of a1, a2, c1 and c2 at the pressure taps on the domes centreline
are computed for all the cases tested and stored in the database. In the wind load evaluation
system, we use the values of the four constants at a point on the centreline that gives a y-axis
value closest to that of the target point (evaluation point). Fig. 6 shows sample results of
comparison between experiment and formula for the power spectra at two points on a
spherical dome. The experimental results are plotted by the circles and the empirical
formula is represented by the solid line. It is seen that the approximation by Eq. (1) is
generally satisfactory.
In the vaulted roof case, the wind pressures are affected by the wind direction. Hence, the
power spectra are calculated for all pressure taps and wind directions. Fig. 7 shows sample
results of comparison between experiment and formula for the power spectra at two points
on a vaulted roof. Again, the agreement is generally good.

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Sp( f ) 1

Experiment

Formula

0.1

0.1
WIND

WIND

0.01

0.01

0.001

0.001

0.0001

0.0001

0.001

Experiment
Formula

0.01

0.1

10

0.001

(a) Windward region

0.01

0.1

10

f H D
UH

(b) Leeward region

Fig. 6. Wind pressure spectra for a spherical dome (f/D = 0.1, h/D = 4/16, Flow II)
1

1
Experiment
Formula

0.1

0.01

0o

0.01

Experiment
Formula

0.1

30o

p2

0.001

0.001

0.0001

0.0001

Sp( f )

C.L

0.00001
0.001

0.01

C.L.

0.00001
0.1

(a) Windward region

10

0.001

0.01

0.1

f H D
10 U H

(b) Leeward region

Fig. 7. Wind pressure spectra for a circular arc roof (f/D = 0.1, h/D = 1/30, Flow IV)

3. Artificial neural network

3.1 Spherical dome
Although the wind pressures were measured simultaneously at several hundreds points in the
wind tunnel experiments, spatial resolution may be still limited from the viewpoint of cladding
design. Cladding or roofing cover is sensitive to the spatial variation and fluctuating character
of the time-dependent wind pressures. The turbulence of approach flow also affects the wind
pressures significantly. Hence, an artificial neural network based on Cascade Correlation
Learning Network (CCLN, Fahlman and Lebiere, 1990) is used to improve the resolution.
Fig. 8 illustrates the network architecture, which has a layered structure with an input layer,
an output layer and a hidden layer between the input and output layers. The input vector
consists of five parameters, that is, two geometric parameters of the building (f/D and h/D),
the coordinates (x, y) of measuring point, and the turbulence intensity IuH of the approach
flow at the mean roof height H; the coordinate system is defined as shown in Fig. 2. There is
also a bias unit, permanently set to +1. Each network is constructed for each of the four
parameters, C p , C p ' , Sk and Ku.
The quickprop algorithm (Fahlman, 1988) is used to train the output weights. Training
begins with no hidden units. As the first step, the direct input-output connections are

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435

trained as well as possible over the entire training set. The network is trained until either a
predetermined maximum number of iterations is reached, or no significant error reduction
has occurred after a certain number of training cycles. If the error is not acceptable after the
first step, a new hidden unit is added to the network to reduce this residual error. The new
unit is added to the network, its input weights are frozen, and all the output weights are
once again trained. This cycle repeats until the error becomes acceptably small.

Hidden
h/D
f/D

Cpmean
Cp

or

CpCrms
p'

Iuh

or

Skewness

+1
Bias-Unit

or

Output Layer

Input Layer

Kurtosis

Fig. 8. CCLN for the statistics of wind pressures on spherical domes

Well-distributed representative data are required for training the network. In the abovementioned database, pressure data at 230 locations are stored each for five f/D ratios,
seventeen h/D ratios and two kinds of turbulent boundary layers (open-country and urban
exposures). Note that the h/D ratio is varied from 1/16 to 1 in the flat roof case (f/D = 0).
Therefore, the number of data set is 38,640 (= 2 (16+174) 230 = 168230). Ten typical
cases of experimental conditions are selected from these 168 cases. Forty-six locations are
randomly selected from the 230 points for testing. Therefore, the number of test data is 460
(= 1046). The other data are used for training the network.
The sigmoid function represented by the following equation is used to process the net input
signals and provide the output signals at hidden nodes:
f (s) =

Smax Smin
+ Smin
1 + es

(2)

where Smax and Smin represent the upper and lower limits of the output from the neuron.
Appropriate values of Smax and Smin depend on the output vector. In the training phase of
the network using the quickprop algorithm, three empirical terms, i.e. learning rate ,
maximum growth factor , and weight decay term , are introduced to improve the
convergence of training and the stability of computation. Appropriate values of these terms
are determined by trial and error, considering the behaviour of the mean square error that
the network produces. The weights are initialised to random numbers between +1.0 and
1.0. The number of epochs also affects the convergence of training, which is again
determined by trial and error. Table 1 summarizes the values of and the numbers of

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epochs for C p , C p ' , Sk and Ku, together with the values of the error index IE in the training
phase; the error index is defined by the following equation:
1 N
2
(Tk Ok )
N k =1

IE =

(3)

where Tk and Ok represent the target value and the actual output for training pattern k,
respectively; N = number of training patterns; and = standard deviation of the target data.
Because the values of Sk and Ku change over a wide range, these values are divided by some
factors.

Cp

0.5

Number of epochs
100

IE (training phase)
0.144

Cp '

0.5

50

0.333

Sk
Ku

0.02
0.2

200
300

0.478
0.421

Statistical value

Table 1. Characteristics of the neural network for spherical domes

0.6

Target+0.26
-2

Target-0.26
-1.5
-1

-0.5

0.5

-0.5
-1
-1.5

Predicted value by ANN

Predicted value by ANN

0.5
Prediction

Prediction
Target+0.07
Target-0.07

0.4

0.2

0
0

-2

0.2
0.4
Experimental value

Experimental value

(a) C p

(b) C p '
5

-1.5

0
-1

-0.5

0
-1

-2
Experimental value

(c) Sk

0.5

Predicted value by ANN

Predicted value by ANN

1
Prediction
Target+0.2
Target-0.2
-2

0.6

4
3
2
Prediction

Target+0.63
Target-0.63

0
-1

-1

Experimental value

(d) Ku

Fig. 9. Comparison between experiment and ANN prediction for C p , C p ' , Sk and Ku

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Fig. 9 shows comparisons between experiment and prediction by ANN for C p , C p ' , Sk and
Ku, respectively; 460 data are plotted in each figure. The solid lines in the figures represent
permitted limits, which are tentatively chosen as a standard deviation of the experimental
values. Regarding C p and C p ' , the agreement is generally good. Regarding the skewness
and kurtosis, on the other hand, the agreement is somewhat poorer than that for C p and
C p ' , although the ANN captures the general trend of the experimental data. This is because
the skewness and kurtosis exhibit large values in magnitude in relatively small areas.
Furthermore, their variation in these areas is also remarkable. However, as will be described
later, the effects of Sk and Ku on the simulated time-series of wind pressures are relatively
small. This feature implies that the neural networks constructed for Sk and Ku can be used in
the practical applications.
To discuss the application of the ANN to practical situations, a comparison is made between
the prediction by the ANN and the experimental data for Nagoya Dome (Fig. 10). The
geometry of this building is as follows: i.e. span D = 187.2 m, rise f = 32.95 m, eaves-height h =
30.7 m (f/D = 0.18, h/D = 0.16). This dome is constructed in the suburb of Nagoya City, Japan.
The wind tunnel experiment was carried out with a 1/500 scale model in a turbulent boundary
layer with a power law exponent of = 0.25 and the turbulence intensity of 0.19 at the level of
rooftop. The actual situation in the circular area with a radius of 450 m around the dome was
modeled exactly. The experimental data on C p and C p ' were provided by Takenaka
Corporation that had carried out the wind tunnel experiment. Fig. 11 shows comparisons
between the ANN prediction and the experimental data for C p and C p ' . The agreement is
relatively good, particularly for C p . The ANN somewhat overestimates the values of C p ' .
However, such a difference up to about 0.1 may be acceptable in plactical applications.

Fig. 10. Nagoya Dome (provided by Takenaka Corporation)

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WIND

WIND

Wind tunnel experiment

ANN prediction

WIND

Wind tunnel experiment

WIND

ANN prediction

(b) C p '

(a) C p

Fig. 11. Comparison between ANN and experiment for the C p and C p ' distributions
3.2 Vaulted roof
Fig. 12 shows the ANN architecture for vaulted roofs. In this case, the wind direction is
considered in the input vector. The network is trained in the same manner as that for
spherical domes. Eighteen typical cases of experimental conditions are selected from the 342
cases. Forty-five locations are randomly selected from the 228 points for testing. The number
of test data is 810 (= 1845). The other data are used for training the network. Table 2
summarizes the characteristics of the network obtained.
Fig. 13 shows comparisons between experiment and prediction by ANN for C p , C p ' , Sk and
Ku, respectively; 810 data are plotted in each figure. The behaviour of the networks for
vaulted roofs is similar to that for spherical domes shown in Fig. 9. However, the ANN
prediction is somewhat poorer than that for spherical domes. This may be related to a wider
variation of the characteristics of wind pressures with many parameters in the vaulted roof
case.
f/D
Hidden
h/D
x
y
Cp mean
Cp
or
CpCrms
p'

IuH
sin
cos
+1

or
Skewness
Bias-Unit

Input Layer

or
Kurtosis
Output Layer

Fig. 12. CCLN for the statistics of wind pressures on vaulted roofs

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Cp

0.2

Number of epochs
150

IE (training phase)
0.229

Cp '

0.5

150

0.378

Sk
Ku

0.2
0.2

300
500

0.446
0.827

Statistical value

Table 2. Characteristics of the neural network for vaulted roofs

-2.5

Predicted velue by ANN

Predicted value by ANN

1
Prediction
Target+0.31
Target-0.31

0.5

-1.5

-0.5-0.5

0.5

-1.5

Prediction
Target+0.09
Target-0.09

0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0

-2.5
Experimental value

0.2

0.4
0.6
Experimental value

0.8

(b) C p '

(a) C p

0
-4

-3

-2

-1

0
-2

1
Prediction
Target+0.34
Target-0.34

Predicted value by ANN

Predicted value by ANN

-4
Experimantal value

(c) Sk

9
7
5
3
Prediction
Target+1.2
Target-1.2

1
-1-1

3
5
7
Experimental value

(d) Ku

Fig. 13. Comparison between experiment and ANN prediction for C p , C p ' , Sk and Ku

4. Time series simulation of wind pressures

4.1 Outline of the procedure
First, the application of the Kumar and Stathopouloss method (1999, 2001) to the present
problem is discussed. The flow chart for the simulation is described in Fig. 14. The approach
is based on an FFT Algorithm. The Fourier amplitude is constructed from the power
spectrum Sp(f) of pressure fluctuations, which is represented by Eq. (1). The values of the
four coefficients involved in the equation are obtained from the database. The spike features
inducing the non-Gaussian character to the pressure fluctuations are achieved by preserving
the target skewness and kurtosis given by the ANN and the database. A simple stochastic
model with a single parameter b has been suggested for the simulation of phase. The

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computation of b is accomplished by minimizing the sum of the squared errors in skewness

and kurtosis. In practice, changing the value of b from 0 to 1 with a small increment (e.g.
0.01), the skewness Sk and kurtosis Ku of the simulated time series are computed. The sum of
the squared errors (SSE) in Sk and Ku are calculated for each value of b and the value giving
the least SSE is chosen as the optimum one.

PHASE

AMPLITUDE
Generate Fourier
amplitude

Ik

I k = n Sm ( f k )f

Generate exponential
random numbers

Generate phase
signal

Et

Generate skeleton signal

Yt

Yt sin(2 kt / n)
n 1

k = arctan

Yt = 0, with probability b
Et, with probability 1-b

Simulate

Y cos(2 kt / n)
t =0
n 1

t =0

( k < )

Zt

Z t = n 1 I k eik ei 2 kt / n
n 1

k =0

Fig. 14. Schematic of the generation of non-Gaussian wind pressure time series (Kumar and
Stathopoulos, 1999, 2001)

Skewness , Kurtosis 3

4.2 Toward simplification of the procedure

The most troublesome and time-consuming procedure is the determination of the optimum
value of b. Fig. 15 shows sample results on the variation of Sk and Ku with b. Note that the
ordinate of the figure for kurtosis is represented by Ku3, considering that Ku = 3 for
Gaussian processes. Because the skewness and kurtosis are related to each other, both Sk and
Ku show similar behavior. They increase monotonically with an increase in b. When the
value of b is relatively small, such as b < 0.6, for example, the variation is quite small. On the
other hand, they increase significantly with increasing b for larger values of b. In practice,
the optimum value of b is not so large and the values of Sk and Ku are less sensitive to b.
Therefore, the variation of Sk and Ku can be approximated by a simple function of b with a
small number of data points in the practical range. The cubic spline function is used here.
Using such a function, the optimum value of b can be calculated easily.
20
Skewness
Kurtosis-3

15

WIND

10
5
0
0.0

0.5
b

1.0

Fig. 15. Variation of Sk and Ku with b for a spherical dome (f/D = 0.1, h/D = 0.25, Flow II)

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Cp

4.3 Results and discussion

A comparison of the wind pressure time series between experiment and simulation is
shown in Fig. 16. The spike features of pressure fluctuations are simulated well. Tables 3
and 4 summarize comparisons between experiment and simulation for the statistics of the
wind pressures at two typical points on a spherical dome and a vaulted roof, respectively.
Note that the averaging time for evaluating the peak pressure coefficients is 1 sec and the
values in the table are all the ensemble averages of the results from six consecutive runs. A
good agreement between experiment and simulation is seen for both points. Similar
comparisons are made for ninety-two points shown in Fig. 17 (points on the solid lines).
The results for Cpmax and Cpmin are plotted in Fig. 18. The agreement is relatively good.
Approximately 95 % of the simulated results is within a range of the target value 0.1 for
Cpmax and 0.2 for Cpmax. These results indicate that the method proposed here can be used
for evaluating the design wind loads by combining the database of the statistics of wind
pressures and the ANN.
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2
-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0
-1.2
0

240 480 720 960 1200 1440 1680 1920 2160 2400 2640 2880 3120 3360

Time (s)

Cp

(a) Experiment
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2
-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1.0
-1.2
0

240 480 720 960 1200 1440 1680 1920 2160 2400 2640 2880 3120 3360

Time (s)
(b) Simulation

Fig. 16. Experimental and simulated time series of wind pressure coefficient at a point near
the leeward edge of a spherical dome (f/D = 0.2, h/D = 4/16, Flow II)

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Statistics

Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research

Cp

Cpmax

Cpmin

Sk

Ku

Tap location

(a) Point 1

WIND

Experiment

0.226

-0.394

-1.872

-0.385

3.065

Simulation

0.211

-0.395

-1.685

-0.436

3.057

Error

0.015

0.001

-0.187

0.051

0.008

#1

(b) Point 192

WIND

Experiment

0.126

0.208

-0.742

-0.647

4.225

Simulation

0.120

0.154

-0.732

-0.661

4.212

Error

0.006

0.054

-0.010

0.014

0.013

#192

Table 3. Comparison between experiment and simulation for the statistics of wind pressures
on a spherical dome (f/D = 0.2, h/D = 0.25, Flow II)
Cp

Cpmax

Cpmin

Sk

Ku

Experiment

0.475

-0.437

-3.188

-1.367

3.302

Simulation

0.437

-0.386

-3.084

-1.188

2.852

Error

0.038

-0.051

-0.104

-0.179

0.450

Experiment

0.206

0.115

-1.209

-0.884

2.708

Simulation

0.190

0.066

-1.142

-0.852

2.332

Error

0.016

0.049

-0.067

-0.032

0.376

Statistics

Tap location

(a) Point 1
WIND

#1

(b) Point 210

WIND

#210

Table 4. Comparison between experiment and simulation for the statistics of wind pressures
on a vaulted roof (f/D = 0.3, h/D = 10/30, Flow II)

WIND

92

Fig. 17. Tap locations where the time series of pressure fluctuations is simulated (92 points
on the solid lines)

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A Computer-assisted Wind Load Evaluation System

for the Design of Cladding of Buildings: A Case Study of Spatial Structures
-0.5

0.5
0
-0.5

0.5

-0.5

Simulation
Target
Target0.1

Simulated result

Simulated result

-1

443

Simulation
Target
Target0.2

-1

-1.5

-2
-2

-1
Experimental result Target

-1.5
-1
Experimental result Target

-0.5

(b) C p '

(a) C p

Fig. 18. Comparison between experimant and simulation for a spherical dome (f/D = 0.2,
h/D = 4/16, Flow II)

10
| Cp min/Cp min| (%)

|Cp min/Cp min| (%)

5
4
3
2
1

8
6
4
2

0
-100

-50

S k (
(a) Skewness

50

100

-100

-50

50

100

K u (%)

(b) Kurtosis

Fig. 19. Effects of Sk and Ku on the simulated value of Cpmin for a spherical dome (f/D = 0.2,
h/D = 9/16, x/D = 0, y/D = 1/4)
As mentioned above, the accuracy of the ANN prediction for Sk and Ku is not so high,
compared with that for C p and C p ' . Then, the effects of Sk and Ku on the simulated results
are investigated. The time series is simulated by changing either Sk or Ku from the optimum
value. Fig. 19(a) shows the variation of the change of Cpmin (Cpmin) with the change of Sk
(Sk) from the optimum value. A similar result for Ku is shown in Fig. 19(b). It is found that
the simulated results are not sensitive to the variation of Sk and Ku. In practice, the simulated
result of Cpmin changes some 5 percent when the values of Sk or Ku change by 50 percent.

5. Application of the wind load evaluation system to wind resistant design

The wind load evaluation system proposed here can provide peak pressure coefficients
according to a predetermined risk level by combining the extreme value analysis. Fig. 20
shows the probability of non-exceedence for Cpmin at a windward edge point of a spherical
dome. The thick solid line shows the result calculated from a set of 200 extremes that the
evaluation system predicted. For comparative purpose, the results predicted from 33 sets of
six extremes by using BLUE (Lieblein, 1974) are represented by thin solid lines. These
results exhibit a considerable scatter around the 200 data curve. The result predicted from

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Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research

Probability of non-excedence

the six experimental data is also quite different from the 200 data curve. Such a difference
implies that we need a lot of data for predicting the probability of non-exceedence precisely.
It takes a long time to collect so much data in a wind tunnel experiment. By comparison, the
proposed wind load evaluation system can provide much data more easily. This is one of
the advantages of the system over the wind tunnel experiment.
1.0
0.8

0.6
0.4
Experiment N = 6
Simulation N = 200
Simulation N = 6

0.2
0.0
0.5

1.0

1.5
-Cpmin

Fig. 20. Probability of non-exceedence for Cpmin (Spherical dome; f/D = 0.2, h/D = 4/16,
Flow II)
Furthermore, by introducing a load cycle counting method, such as the rainflow count
method, the system can provide the wind load cycles for fatigue design. Fig. 21 shows a
sample result on the frequency distribution of wind pressure coefficient fluctuations,
represented as a function of mean and amplitude of fluctuation at the center of a dome. By
combining such a result with the influence coefficients, we can easily compute the stresses
or strains induced in the cladding and its fixings, which are used for evaluating the fatigue
damage.

Relative 0.07
frequency 0.06

WIND

0.05
0.04
0.03

0.02
0.01
0
-1.95 -1.45

Mean

0.025
0.525
-0.95 -0.45

Amplitude

Fig. 21. Number of load cycles (Spherical dome; f/D = 0.2, h/D = 4/16, Flow II)

6. Concluding remarks
A computer-assisted load evaluation system for the design of roof cladding of spatial
structures using an aerodynamic database, artificial neural network and time-series
simulation technique has been proposed. Focus is on spherical domes and vaulted roofs as
typical roof shapes used for spatial structures. The proposed methodology is capable of

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A Computer-assisted Wind Load Evaluation System

for the Design of Cladding of Buildings: A Case Study of Spatial Structures

445

providing peak pressure coefficients according to pre-determined risk levels by combining

the extreme value analysis; this can generate risk consistent and more economical design
wind loads for the roof cladding. Furthermore, by introducing a load cycle counting
method, such as the rainflow count method, the system can provide the wind load cycles to
be used for fatigue design.
This chapter describes the components of the load evaluation system proposed by the
author. Although there are some problems to be investigated further, the results presented
here indicate that the proposed system is promising. In this chapter the subject is limited to
spherical domes and vaulted roofs. However, it is possible to apply the proposed method to
the cladding of any buildings, once the database of the statistics of wind pressures has been
constructed based on a wind tunnel experiment and/or CFD computations.

7. Acknowledgment
A part of the study is financially supported by Nohmura Foundation for Membrane
Structures Technology. The authors are much indebted to Dr. Takeshi Hongo of Kajima
Technical Research Institute and Dr. Hirotoshi Kikuchi of Shimizu Corporation for
providing them the wind tunnel test data. Thanks are also due to Mr. Raku Tsuruishi, Ms.
Miki Hamai and Chihiro Sukegawa, who were then graduate students of Tohoku
University, for assistance in constructing the neural networks.

8. References
Fahlman, S.E. (1988). Faster-learning variations on back-propagation: an empirical study,
Proceedings of the 1988 Connectionist Models Summer School, Morgan Kaufmann.
Fahlman, S.E. & Lebiere, C. (1990). The cascade-correlation learning architecture, Advances in
Neural Information Processing Systems, Vol. II, Morgam Kaufmann, pp. 524-532.
Kumar, K.S. & Stathopoulos, T. (1998). Fatigue analysis of roof cladding under simulated
wind loading, Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, Vol. 77&78,
pp. 171-184.
Kumar, K.S. & Stathopoulos, T. (1999). Synthesis of non-Gaussian wind pressure time series
on low building roofs, Engineering Structures, Vol. 21, pp. 1086-1100.
Kumar, K.S. and Stathopoulos, T. (2001). Generation of local wind pressure coefficients for
the design of low building roofs, Wind and Structures, An International Journal, Vol.
4, No. 6, pp. 455-468.
Lieblein, J. (1974). Efficient methods of extreme-value methodology, National Bureau of
Standards, U.S. Department of Commerce, NBSIR 74-602.
Nogchi, M.; Uematsu, Y. & Sone, T. (2003). Structural characteristics and wind resistant
design of spatial structures constructed in Japan, Eleventh International Conference on
Wind Engineering, pp. 1595-16002, Lubbock, Texas, USA, June 2-5, 2003.
Nogchi, M. & Uematsu, Y. (2004). Model of fluctuating wind pressures on spherical domes
for load estimation of cladding, Proceedings of the 18th National Symposium on Wind
Engineering, December 1-3, 2004, Tokyo, Japan, pp. 353-358 (in Japanese).
Uematsu, Y., Araki, Y., Tsuruishi, R. & Hongo, T. (2005). Wind load evaluation system for
cladding of spherical domes using aerodynamic database, neural network and
simulation, Proceedings of the 6th Asia-Pacific Conference on Wind Engineering, 12-14
September, 2005, Seoul, Korea (CD-ROM).

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Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research

Uematsu, Y., Tsuruishi, R., Hongo T. & Kikuchi, K. (2007). A computer-assisted wind load
evaluation system for the design of cladding of spatial structures, Proceedings of the
11th International Conference on Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering
Computing, 18-21 September, 2007, St. Julians, Malta (CD-ROM).
Uematsu, Y. & Tsuruishi, R. (2008). Wind load evaluation system for the design of cladding
of spatial structures, Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, Vol. 96,
pp. 2054-2066.

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Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research

Edited by Prof. Jorge Colman Lerner

ISBN 978-953-307-623-2
Hard cover, 709 pages
Publisher InTech

Published online 27, July, 2011

Published in print edition July, 2011

The book Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research is comprised of 33 chapters
divided in five sections. The first 12 chapters discuss wind tunnel facilities and experiments in incompressible
flow, while the next seven chapters deal with building dynamics, flow control and fluid mechanics. Third section
of the book is dedicated to chapters discussing aerodynamic field measurements and real full scale analysis
(chapters 20-22). Chapters in the last two sections deal with turbulent structure analysis (chapters 23-25) and
wind tunnels in compressible flow (chapters 26-33). Contributions from a large number of international experts
make this publication a highly valuable resource in wind tunnels and fluid dynamics field of research.

How to reference

In order to correctly reference this scholarly work, feel free to copy and paste the following:
Yasushi Uematsu (2011). A Computer-Assisted Wind Load Evaluation System for the Design of Cladding of
Buildings: a Case Study of Spatial Structures, Wind Tunnels and Experimental Fluid Dynamics Research, Prof.
Jorge Colman Lerner (Ed.), ISBN: 978-953-307-623-2, InTech, Available from:
http://www.intechopen.com/books/wind-tunnels-and-experimental-fluid-dynamics-research/a-computerassisted-wind-load-evaluation-system-for-the-design-of-cladding-of-buildings-a-case-study

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