The behaviour of a new type of connection system for light-weight steel structures applied to roof trusses

The Rosette-joining system is a completely new press-joining method for cold-formed steel structures. One Rosette-joint has a shear capacity equal to that of approximately four screws or rivets. The Rosette thin-walled steel truss system presents a new fully integrated prefabricated alternative to light-weight roof truss structures. The trusses are built up on special industrial production lines from modified top hat sections used as top and bottom chords and channel sections used as webs which are joined together with the Rosette press-joining technique to form a completed structure easy to transport and install. A single web section is used when sufficient but can be strengthened by double-nesting two separate sections or by using two lateral profiles where greater compressive axial forces are met. An individual joint in the truss can be strengthened by introducing a hollow bolt into the joint hole. The bolt gives the connection capacity a boost of approximately 20%. A series of laboratory tests have been carried out in order to verify the Rosette truss system in practice. In addition to compression tests on individual sections of different lengths, tests have also been done on small structural assemblies and on actual full-scale trusses of a span of 10 metres. Design calculations have been performed on selected roof truss geometries based on the test results, FE-analysis and on the Eurocode 3 and U.S.(AISI) design codes.