ARTIFICIAL AVALANCHE RELEASE

KUENSTLICHE LAWINENAUSLOESUNG

An alternative to the blasting of avalanches with explosives exists in the fact that slab-like vibrating bodies incited by vibration generators may be constructed in areas of avalanche cracks and upon attainment of pre-determined values such as depth and temperature of snow and external temperature, etc, the overlying snow may be released as a controlled avalanche. For this purpose vibrating plates are installed to move on rubber-spring elements fitted to a base frame. The force activation of this solid-spring-system is achieved by ordinary commercial external vibrators with short circuited rotors, which are flanged on to the vibrating plates. During the tests the system was optimized, not only in vibration technique but also in respect of construction and erection by changes to the parameters of the vibration amplitude, vibration direction, weight of the vibrating plate, spring characteristics of the rubber element and slope of the vibrating body. Furthermore as a measuring aid a so-called lift table was fabricated and installed, consisting of a slope-integrated plate and a spindle-shears structure, by which the plate can be slowly and gradually moved steeper than the slope, and in so doing lifts up a wedge of snow from the snow cover and thereby enables visual observation of the sliding behaviour of the snow cover. The vibrating plate and lift table were installed at Valluga/St Anton am Arlberg and at Goldeck/Spittal an der Drau. With both systems (vibrating plate and lift table) success was achieved in releasing the snow. (TRRL)

• Corporate Authors:

  Ministry of Building and Technology, Austria

  Stuberring 1
  A-1010 Vienna,   Austria 
• Authors:
  • FRITZ, H
• Publication Date: 1980

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Photos; References;
• Pagination: p. 11-37
• Serial:
  • Strassenforschung
  • Issue Number: 146
  • Publisher: Ministry of Building and Technology, Austria

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Avalanches; Depth; Snow; Springs (Vehicles); Structural plates; Temperature; Vibratory equipment
• Uncontrolled Terms: Plates
• Old TRIS Terms: Vibrating equipment
• ITRD Terms: 9097: Artificial; 8007: Austria; 2530: Avalanche; 6136: Measurement; 8559: Research report; 2552: Snow; 3697: Vibrating plate; 5558: Vibration; 2575: Winter
• Subject Areas: Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00349285
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen (BASt)
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: May 28 1982 12:00AM