Earthquake shaking table

There are different experimental techniques which can be used to test the response of structures and soil or rock slopes to verify their seismic performance.

This device is used for shaking scaled slopes, structural models or building components with a wide range of simulated ground motions, including reproductions of recorded earthquake time-histories.

While modern tables typically consist of a rectangular platform that is driven in up to six degrees of freedom (DOF) by servo-hydraulic or other types of actuators, the earliest shake table, invented at the University of Tokyo in 1893 to categorize types of building construction, ran on a simple wheel mechanism.

Using video records and data from transducers, it is possible to interpret the dynamic behaviour of the specimen.

[4] Earthquake shaking tables are essential in model testing contests, where participants evaluate designs developed within specific guidelines against simulated seismic activity.