The role of physical models in the validation and calibration of numerical models -- The example of the Lilleb{\ae}lt Bridge

Abstract

With the rapid advancement of computer technologies enabling fast calculations of complex structures, numerical methods have become a central tool in engineering sciences, while physical models have increasingly receded into the background. Nevertheless, owing to their clarity and comprehensibility, these former engineering tools remain of great value and their use can still be highly relevant today. At the example of the scale model of the Lilleb{\ae}lt Bridge -- developed by the Copenhagen engineers Christen Ostenfeld and Wriborg J{\o}nson and given for research purposes to the Bauhaus-Universit\"at Weimar -- this paper illustrates how physical models can still serve as useful instruments in research and teaching. By applying operational modal analysis, the natural frequencies and damping ratios of the bridge model are experimentally determined, which in turn can serve as reference data for the calibration and validation of numerical models.