The Control, Dynamics and Applications Group has created a device that protects buildings from the effects of earthquakes.

The Technical University of Catalonia´s CoDAlab team has designed a device that reduces the negative effects of movements on a supported object. The system can be applied on a large scale to reduce motion induced in buildings and bridges by earthquakes and other vibration sources. On a small scale, it can be used to protect motion-sensitive equipment, such as measuring devices, precision machines and instruments of the type found in laboratories, research centers and operating rooms, as well as museum pieces, antiquities, and other valuable objects stored in buildings. The goal of the research is to mitigate or reduce the possible damage caused by earthquakes, and the result will lead to better protection of buildings, infrastructure, and sensitive equipment subjected to dynamic loads caused by seismic activity.

The new device, for which a patent is being sought, is an advanced seismic isolator known as the Roll-n-cage (RNC) isolator. It is an anti-vibration device that is positioned between the object and the ground or any other support surface, to produce horizontal decoupling between the two. The RNC isolator, made with common materials such as steel and rubber, is based on simple principles and technologies that have been implemented in an innovative way, to provide essential features not found in other isolation devices used in professional practice until now.