Abstract
Domes carry vertical loads onto their base by mainly compressive membrane-stresses. In a membrane inflated by air, only tension stresses occur. When a dome is formed in a shape the same as that of the inflated membrane, and is subjected to external pressure, only compressive membrane-stresses will occur, prompting the label of “membrane-dome” for such structures.
In this paper, the determination of shape of membrane-dome with regular polygonal boundaries is introduced; thin rubber sheets are fixed on the required boundary, inflated by air, and the resulting shapes are measured by using a moire technique.
