Keywords: fatigue stress, train-bridge coupled dynamics, steel truss bridge, field test, static influence-line, moving load.

The stress response due to repetitive live loads at fatigue-prone locations is the crucial information for fatigue assessment. With the raising of train speeds and the increasing of axle loads in railways, the conventional static influence-line method and moving load method are insufficient to capture dynamic interactions between the train and the bridge structure, and therefore, unable to provide accurate stress data for the fatigue assessment. This paper presents an approach for analyzing the fatigue stresses of steel truss bridges using dynamic vehicle-bridge system model. The coupled system model consists of a three-dimensional vehicle model, a three-dimensional bridge model, and a linear wheel-rail interaction model. The dynamic stresses of bridge members are subsequently obtained based on the results of coupled train-bridge vibration analysis, by using the linear elastic finite element theory. The measured data from the field test on the considered bridge are utilized to validate the established model, showing that the system model can effectively predict the fatigue stresses induced by passing trains.

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