ABSTRACT
From the structural bearings special challenges are often required by long-term and lifecycle cost. The often-relatively small dead load and/or soft structures increases the issue of fatigue and depending on the concept of the girders; the structural bearings also must carry uplift forces often, which were unusual in conventional bridges in the past. The aim of the innovative bearing is to take up the challenge and, by a clever arrangement of the spherical bearings, to handle the input along with highest durability and less maintenance cost. Both EN1337 and AASHTO LRFD require the avoidance of a separation of the sliding surfaces of the bearings in service limit state. Conventional concepts often do not meet this requirement, which can lead to limitations in service life. The innovative arrangement of inclined sliding surfaces avoids the harmful separation and allows - with reduced number of bearing parts - a design with fatigue strength. The paper is intended to explain the innovation of the catamaran spherical bearing in this regard. In addition, further advantages should be explained. These include a horizontal clearance free guidance of the girder in the basic/initial service limit state and a perfect centring and alignment of the girder achieved by the inclined sliding surfaces.
