3-bar tensegrity units with non-equilateral triangle on an end plane

Abstract The well-known 3-bar prismatic tensegrity unit has equilateral triangles on the two end planes. In this paper, properties of the 3-bar tensegrity unit with non-equilateral triangle on one end plane are investigated. The unit is generated by transforming the equilateral triangle of the tensegrity prism to a triangle with irregular shape. The self-equilibrium equations of the 3-bar tensegrity unit are analytically solved for geometrical parameters and force densities of the members. The analytical solutions are utilized to investigate detailed characteristics of the 3-bar tensegrity units with non-equilateral triangle on an end plane.