COMPAS Masonry: A computational framework for practical assessment of unreinforced masonry structures

Abstract

In recent years, our (academic/theoretical) understanding of the behaviour of unreinforced masonry (URM) structures has improved significantly, and many advanced technological solutions for conservation have been developed. However, there is still a lack of appropriate methods and tools that can be used for the assessment of URM structures in everyday practice. Therefore, since 2018, the Block Research Group has been working on “Practical Stability Assessment Strategies for Vaulted Unreinforced Masonry Structures” with support of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). The goal of this research project is to create tools suitable for everyday engineering practice and to develop appropriate analysis strategies for diverse contexts and circumstances related to the availability of time, budget and available data. The main outcome is COMPAS Masonry: an open-source, Python-based computational framework for the assessment of URM structures. It provides a general-purpose toolbox for working with assemblies (compas_dem) and three custom made solvers that can deal with different aspects of the assessment of masonry structures: compas_tna based on Thrust Network Analysis, compas_prd based on the Piecewise Rigid Displacement method, and compas_rbe based on the Rigid Block Equilibrium.