Treehouse Engineering - About Trees

About Trees-
A limb can be represented as a cantilevered beam, approximately round in cross section, that is supported by the main stem at one end and in turn supports various mass and force loads collected from the attached biological materials. Limbs can be horizontal, vertical or anywhere in between.

Main stems of trees can be represented as a vertically cantilevered column that collects loads from its system of limbs and transfers them into the attached root system. One of the many gifts from nature to the tree house engineer is the simple fact that trees main stems, having no intrinsic vanity, grow to the size required to provide an adequate connection between the solar powered biological engine above and the physical and chemical support system below. It is therefore possible and useful to determine the loading on the tree by simply gaining an understanding of the inherent strength exhibited by the particular main stem under consideration.

Others have attempted to estimate the collected loads from each leaf and minor stem, and while a fascinating and useful enterprise/
Tree House Engineering:
To promote the safe and aesthetically pleasing construction of structures mounted completely or partially in living trees.
Engineering Issues include:
Tree Mechanics
Rigidity and Flexibility
Three Dimensional Structure Loads
Combined Analysis of Structure using single and multiple tree support
Redundancy
Mounting Systems:
Perch on Limbs
Nails, Lag Screws, etc.
Artificial Limbs - GL’s and similar designs
Through Stud Mounting Systems
Cable Hung Systems
Ground Supported
Combination Systems

treehouseengineering@mac.com
http://treehouseengineering.com

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