Analysis Model of Semi-Rigid Joint Using Finite Element Method

This study was carried out to develop a finite element analysis model that considers the semi-rigid characteristics of a wood-dowel joint, which is different from conventional joints that are used in the field of engineering. Wood-dowel joints are classified as semi-rigid joints that possess the following characteristics: (1) they are less stiffer than rigid joints and (2) their stiffness is determined by the dowel's diameter, depth of dowel embedment in the face member and quantity of pin dowels. In this study a finite element model that considers the changes in stiffness according to the above mentioned factors was developed and its suitability was verified by experiments using a wood-dowel joint test specimen made up of particleboards. After comparing the experimental results and the analysis results of the wood-dowel joint which was applied with the proposed finite element model, less than 10% of error was found which is considered to be negligibly small. Hence this shows that this proposed finite element model can be used to predict deformation of wood-dowel joints.