PSI - Issue 73

Marie Horňáková et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 73 (2025) 33 – 37 Marie Horňáková, David Juračka, Pavel Dobeš, Petr Lehner / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2025) 000–000

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methods such as nails, screws, pins or pin joints have limitations, particularly in terms of design flexibility, manufacturing complexity and potential weakening of the timber. Given these challenges, there has been a growing interest in new technologies that could overcome these obstacles and optimise the joining process.

Fig. 1. Photographs from the compression test of the sample.

Again, for this reason, the present research focuses on the development of 3D printed plastic joints for joining wood-to-wood structures (Dedek et al., 2024; Ghanbari - Ghazijahani et al., 2022; Nicolau et al., 2022) . 3D printing presents a unique opportunity to create complex geometries with high precision and design flexibility, allowing joints to be optimized for specific loading and aesthetic requirements (Tabacu and Ducu, 2020; Tomei et al., 2024). On the other hand, there are problems that are not easy to solve (Majid et al., 2022). Therefore, there is a need to actively test and acquire new information that will advance knowledge to the next steps. This article focuses specifically on the results of the axial compression tests (see in Figure 1). Several variants of the joints were prepared in order to obtain information on their mechanical properties and to compare their behaviour under compressive load. These variants included detailed joints, which were always fitted with three steel pins to ensure against shear. The experimental design involved careful control of the printing parameters and selection of appropriate materials to ensure accurate and repeatable results. The results obtained from these tests are key to optimising the design of the joints and ensuring their reliability and safety in structural applications. Thorough analysis of the test data will enable a better understanding of joint behaviour and lead to the development of more efficient and durable designs.