A computer control system (TRIAX) has been developed for controlling stress path triaxial tests performed using a Bishop and Wesley triaxial cell. It runs on an IBM compatible PC and provides data acquisition and calibration facilities and can control up to twelve stepper motor driven controllers. TRIAX calculates a suite of variables appropriate to triaxial testing. The variables can be accessed by the user for plotting and control. A very flexible control philosophy has been adopted in which the user specifies control parameters in the form of equations. The system can deal with a test which comprises up to 100 different stages. Control is passed from stage to stage by a series of alarms; these are user defined conditional equations which trigger a number of different actions. The flexibility of the system is demonstrated by presenting three alternative ways in which a K₀, stress path (zero radial strain) can be followed. The best method of maintaining K₀, is identified.

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