Bridge Design

As part of a larger engineering project, this phase focused on using Bridge Designer software to simulate, test, and optimize a truss bridge layout before moving forward. The goal here was to analyze how different geometries handle real-world mechanical stress under heavy traffic conditions.

By running simulated load tests, I was able to map out exactly how tension (pulling forces) and compression (crushing forces) distributed across the structure. I used this data to iteratively resize individual beams, strengthening high-stress areas to prevent buckling while keeping the design cost-effective. This simulation phase provided the critical structural data needed to guide the next steps of the project.

Following the simulation data, we used TinkerCAD to bring the bridge concepts into a full 3D space. This phase focused on finalizing the exact geometry, structural connections, and pier placements for the truss network. These models served as our final digital blueprints, turning our force analysis into a concrete 3D design before fabrication.

Final 3D Print

For the testing of our bridge, we placed bricks onto a cart and rolled it across the length of the bridge, then rolled it back over to add more bricks. Our bridge ended up holding 15 bricks. 

While we pushed 15 bricks on the cart, one of the boards on the road collapsed under weight since it wasn't supported enough. So, the cart fell sideways into the side of the bridge and crashed.