Revision of Testing Standards to Determine the Seismic Capacity of Timber Connections according to Eurocode 8

The current paper presents the ongoing work within the Working Group 1 of CEN TC124 for the revision process of testing standards to determine the seismic capacity of timber connections according to Eurocode 8. A Technical Specification (TS 12512) is being prepared in order to clarify how the test methods reported in EN 12512 should be adopted to determine the seismic capacity of connections used in dissipative zones in timber structures. An innovative method for the determination of the seismic capacity of dissipative timber connections is presented. This method is based on the proposal presented in Casagrande et al. (2020) by analysing the results of an experimental campaign of different types of mechanical connections subjected to cyclic tests. Work is currently undertaken to link design standards and testing standards aiming for a consistent definition of basic parameters for the design of timber structures under earthquake impact.