Twin-shaped CFRP-sandwich pedestrian bridge

A concept of a nature-inspired pedestrian bridge which tries to merge architectural, structural and manufacturing aspects in an optimized way is presented. The 18.0-m-span bridge is designed as an overhead spatial frame of a complex double-curved shape, which is composed of twelve modules consisting of lightweight carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) sandwich construction. The modules are fabricated with only one mould through vacuum assisted resin infusion. The aimed visible texture and black colour of the CFRP fabrics represents an essential architectonical element. The resulting benefits and required compromises of this multi-criteria approach are discussed.