As hangs the flexible line: equilibrium of masonry arches (Q871637)

The paper discusses the method of graphical analysis, which is useful in determining the equilibrium states of masonry structures. The authors recall the discovery of Robert Hooke concerning the form of a rigid arch, which can be obtained by inverting a hanging chain (i.e.~a~catenary), and then proceed to give a short overview of the history of graphical analysis. The main part is devoted to a computer implementation of graphical analysis. The tools that are discussed originated in the research at MIT and are now available on the project website. The authors summarize the advantages of the computer-assisted method over the traditional one and present examples of particular problems they had been able to solve (thrust-line analysis of a random arch, semi-circular versus pointed arch, arch on spreading supports, earthquake analysis of masonry arches).