Notes on the tests and vibration properties of hospital elevated helipad structures
More details
Hide details
1
Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Aviation, Al. Krakowska 110/114, 02-256 Warsaw
Submission date: 2020-11-29
Final revision date: 2021-03-02
Acceptance date: 2021-03-02
Publication date: 2021-09-08
Archives of Civil Engineering 2021;67(3):231-242
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Helicopters of the Medical Air Rescue (LPR) help transport the patients to large hospitals quickly. The requirements for the space around the helipad and flight safety mean that more elevated helipads than ground helipads are built at hospitals located in proximity to the city centres. Elevated helipads can vary in design and location depending on the opportunities offered by the hospital buildings and their surroundings. The Vibroacoustic Laboratory of the Warsaw Institute of Aviation took measurements to determine the impact of a helicopter on a hospital elevated helipad during landing or taking off. Helicopter landings are neither frequent nor long, however, they can have a significant impact on a helipad structure, the hospital building itself and its patients, staff or equipment. The impact of the helicopter includes both the noise, vibrations transmitted by the helicopter chassis and air pulsations under the rotor (low-frequency ones). This paper discusses some methods used for measuring vibration properties of several elevated helipads and building recorded during the landing and take-off of the EC135 helicopter. The sample results of such tests are also presented. The tests discussed can be used to verify both the assumptions and calculations referring to helipads and to meet the requirements of the standards in the field of noise and vibrations.