Investigation of the accuracy of vibration response prediction methods for high frequency floors

High frequency floors are often used to support sensitive medical, manufacturing, and laboratory equipment to minimize accelerations due to walking and because most types of equipment are less sensitive to high frequency vibration. Therefore, it is important that structural engineers have accurate methods for predicting the magnitude of high frequency floor vibrations and several candidate prediction methods are found in the literature. This research investigates the accuracy of seven most widely accepted high frequency floor vibration prediction methods. Insitu modal and walking tests were performed on four high frequency floors of different types: steel framed floors supporting an operating room, an intensive care unit, and a research laboratory, and a concrete floor that would be suitable for supporting most types of sensitive equipment. Measurements are compared to predictions generated using the widely accepted methods to assess the accuracy of each method. The SCI P354 simplified method most accurately predicted the narrowband acceleration spectrum peak magnitudes and the SCI P331 method most accurately predicted the one-third octave peak magnitudes.