ABSTRACT
European recommendations for rectangular hollow section (RHS) connection design requires that welds between truss bracing members and chords should have the same resistance as the yield capacity of the member. In the case of weld design based on the actual forces acting in the elements, the designer can use a smaller size of welds, meeting the requirements of the connection deformation and rotation capacity. For overlapped K and N connections, limited experimental research (Davies & Packer (1982)), on 50% overlaps connections have shown that entire overlapping bracing member contact perimeter can be considered as effective. However, no studies of overlapped joints have been carried out so far, with values of overlap from 25% to 50% and from 50% to 100% being used for overlapped K connections with transverse gusset plates. The finite element analysis (FEM) results presented in the article show that the stress distribution in the welds connecting the braces with the chord in K overlapped joints with the transverse gusset plate is varied and depends both on the value of the angle of the brace concerning the chord, the overlap ratio and the brace to chord width ratio. For inclination angles of braces to the chord of 54° and 60°, the outer transverse welds are considered to be only partially effective, with the degree of effectiveness depending on the overlap ratio and the wall slenderness values.
