Abstract

The article proposes three essential elements in the bridge design process: site, type and drawing. The site defines the problem. The type relates to structural history. The study of alternatives constantly turns to the open catalogue of types for support. Drawing is the conceptual synthesis that builds on the two previous elements. Bridge design entails drawing as much as analysis and sometimes it is even more about geometry than about engineering. To design is to draw. A discussion of the proposed key design components is followed by a description of several bridges and footbridges designed by the authors: a competition proposal in the United Kingdom, two competition-winning footbridges—over the Drava river in Maribor, Slovenia, and over the Miño river between Spain and Portugal—and two urban bridges built in Riyadh. The presentation of the projects is structured according to the three essential elements proposed (site, type and drawing) and highlights the main characteristics of each project and the key aspects of their design processes. In conclusion, the article proposes several actions to be considered as open instructions or recommendations for bridge design with the aim of being both a design method and a manifesto to encourage creative structural engineering.

摘要

文章提出了桥梁设计过程中的三个基本要素：场地、类型和图纸。该站点定义了问题。类型与结构历史有关。对替代方案的研究不断转向开放的类型目录以获得支持。绘图是建立在前两个元素之上的概念综合。桥梁设计需要与分析一样多的绘图，有时甚至更多地涉及几何而不是工程。设计就是绘画。讨论了拟议的关键设计组件，然后描述了作者设计的几座桥梁和人行桥：英国的一项竞赛提案，两座赢得竞赛的人行桥——横跨斯洛文尼亚马里博尔的德拉瓦河和米诺河西班牙和葡萄牙之间的河流——以及在利雅得建造的两座城市桥梁。项目的展示根据提出的三个基本要素（场地、类型和图纸）进行结构化，并突出了每个项目的主要特征及其设计过程的关键方面。总而言之，本文提出了几项行动，作为桥梁设计的公开说明或建议，旨在成为鼓励创造性结构工程的设计方法和宣言。