Taipei 101 Damper movement on 12 May 08

Happen to be visiting Taipei 101 when the tremors from the earthquake in Sichuan was felt in Taipei..The damper is 660 ton in weight suspedend on the 92 floor to 87 floor..

[@tommymoose126]

The cables are what supports the ball. What you're referring to as pistons are dampers that translate forces to the tower structure in the opposite direction of movement in order to stabilize it.

[@mowsweepushit]

This Damper thing is nuts. If it ever broke lose the thing would go straight thru the bottom 87 floors.

[@britoca]

I knew about the damper since I read a lot about skyscrapers, and to actually see it in action is incredible. Excellent video, thanks for posting it online.

[@chenchic]

How lucky you are! It is said that you would wish you're in Taipei 101 during a quake in Taiwan. Because it's not only the tallest building but the safest due to many smart construction engineering design.

[@thundermcking6969]

when you realize this video was made when taipei 101 was the tallest building in the world...

[@LukanMacto]

@jding19711 The concept of mass dampers was not invented or even designed by anyone in asia! The concept of the Tuned Mass Damper was invented in the US by Hermann Frahm (US Patent #989958, issued in. 1911) This particular mass damper was designed by a canadian company. It is an amazing use of engineering!

[@bazzle_brush]

It's interesting how this works. The ball is so heavy and is such a dead weight near the top of the tower, it actually reduces the swaying movements of the tower during high winds.

[@This1unbox]

so is the ball moving or is the building moving making it look like the ball is moving?

[@TheGrinningSkull]

This1Unbox I would say building, followed by the ball. The ball therefore dampens the building's movements.

[@Kittyreaper]

This1Unbox The Ball moves in the opposite direction in order to "dampen" the effect the of the seismic activity. This diagram may help you understand better than words. Note that the blue rectangle represents the buildings movement.

[@TheGrinningSkull]

Kittyreaper Where's the diagram? :P

[@HarrisSpinos]

1 year later...

[@mevolander8478]

both

[@pr1268]

Incredible! And, it appears that the TMD isn't even moving at half the amplitude it *could* move if needed. Thank you for sharing.

[@gordongate]

@rosafromluxemburg its a larger multiple of 660 tons in order for it to swing at a harmonic thats opposite to the buildings motion and to slowly cancel out the oscillation as it will put a huge strain on the building when its total kinetic energy has to dissipate through the elastic absorbtion of the buildings steel and concrete joints. The inertia of moving the the steel lump will absorb the vibrations at a rate which prevents fatigue of the buildings construction material.

[@syounantube]

whoa and that's from the earthquake in 四川!? holy crap! I went to Taipei 101 and saw this a couple months ago. Interesting to see the damper in action - thanks for uploading!

[@user-sw2er4bv1r]

i wonder how they got this to the top of the building

[@MrDoinkable]

The would have made it on the spot, at the required location. It would not be practical to carry a ball that big to the top of the building :)

[@v578bv4b4bv]

MrDoinkable Just an fyi, it's transported in stackable plates.

[@matesrates1000]

***** Don't be an ass, it is a reasonable question.

[@matesrates1000]

***** Yes Nathan they do, but some people don't know certain things, by insulting them, they become embarrassed and shamed, then stop asking questions. When you stop asking questions is when you stop using your brain.

[@onyourface207]

plate by plate, see the stacking structure.

[@tupark]

what happens if someone cuts the strings and the ball falls down? will it come crashing through all the floors?

[@phamlexander95]

was the swaying from the sichuan earthquake or was it just wind in taipei

[@britoca]

that's amazing, it's moving a lot! Did you feel the building oscillate?

[@ZE0SPantera]

The wind hitting the building is why that is there in the first place. The wind moves the building. The ball balances it.

[@calvinthedestroyer]

I'm surprised that nobody was screaming or crying, I guess you just get used to earthquakes. was there anyway to tell how much the building itself moved? The TRI Towers by my house swayed about a foot during a small earthquake.

[@Logan-ge5qm]

HOW DID THEY GET IT UP THERE? sorry for yelling but I can't find the answer anywhere

[@jackhynds175]

The "stepped" appearance of the ball makes me think that it is actually a series of discs that were brought up separately and assembled together in place.

[@milancebre]

I don't understand the video? Does that ball amortise the earthquake in the building or what?

[@mowsweepushit]

Wouldnt the 660 tons strain the frigin bdlg daily more than a small quake?

[@kirkygirl]

That must have been really frightening. But you have said that you were quite engrossed by it. I am scared for my safety sometimes because I live on the pacific coast in a city with a lot of old buildings. Earthquakes are not fun.

[@DaveFeenstra]

It was actually a Canadian Company called Motioneering, which now is a part of RWDI, located in Guelph Ontario. Look it up.

[@jtomasik]

Yup. Sure will. I was in Taiwan 3 years ago in a typhoon that clocked 167mph winds. No problems at Taipei 101. In fact, I drove by it the next day when the winds "died" down to under 100mph, with the hopes that the building would be open and I could watch the damper move. Unfortunately, the building was closed, as were most of the businesses.

[@vkotis]

thats great. i'm watching about the building of it now. the damper is amazing. good video.

[@ollyk22]

Now what I am wondering is this - are those rams computer controlled because this apparently being a mild tremor (people outside barely noticing?) the ball is moving quite a bit! At what point if any does that ball actually become a hindrance and destabilize the building?

[@PhosphorQ]

It's been 15 years but the answer is that the ball is always moving in the opposite direction as the building, so never. When the building sways, say, West, the damper's inertia makes it sway East, stabilizing the building.

[@yougeo]

Fascinating! The only footage of a mass damper in action that I have seen.

[@godbeforeme]

It's both actually depending on what type of tons you are using. 660 metric tons, 730 short tons. It's really confusing. No need to argue.

[@bbly096]

Guys read the description. There was an 8.0 earthquake in Sichuan that day that killed 70,000 people.

[@jding19711]

That is ingenious engineering . . . the ball's inertia and the way it is hung freely means that it stays mostly steady when the building sways around it, and the pistons on the bottom transfer the force in the opposite direction of the movement to the building to stabilize it . . . gotta hand it to the Taiwanese! :D

[@Leizazure]

@vaibhavd85 That thing was more then 500 tonnes , you call that fake?

[@Zickcermacity]

Could you sneak into Citi Corp's damper room in Manhattan? I'd love to see that in action! Cool video, keep em coming.

[@xBethybabesx]

now that is what you call extremely clever engineering, you shud watch richard hammond's engineering connections taipei 101 it is really interesting and when this building was being constructed a devastatin earthquake struk and the building still stood tall and unharmed afterwards , that was half way through construction, the damper keeps the building from swayin to much and givin people motion sikness, soz just thought id share mygeeky knowledge

[@cptstubing]

@docsharp00 it might have been difficult with the earthquake happening.. unless he could have mounted it firmly against a wall, railing, something.. but not always possible. When you're that high up during an earthquake, the building doesn't shake much, just sway slowly back and forth as much as 10 metres probably. i agree though, hard to tell what is moving sometimes, the cam or the ball.

[@StarFury2]

That damper is so awesome! I want one...

[@ElenaLovett]

101 is such an amazing place i love the shops in there!!!!! I luv Taiwan!

[@LukanMacto]

@xEskimoEmilyx No xEskimoEmilyx was correct. The mass isn't moving (or at least not much). The building is moving. Its all relativity. Because they are standing in the building it looks like the mass is moving. However, if you were able to see the mass and building from a stationary object in the air then you would see the building moving back and forth and the mass saying relatively stationary.

[@Edson6859]

Taipei 101 to pip Shangai World Finance Center (1,614 ft) by 56 ft, to pip Petronas Towers (1,483 ft) by 187 ft, to pip Sears Tower Chicago (1,450 ft) by 220 ft, to pip Jin Mao Tower (1,381 ft) by 289 ft, to pip World Trade Center (1,368 ft and 1,362 ft) by 302 ft and 308 ft, to pip Two International Finance Center (1,362 ft) by 308 ft, and to pip Empire State Building (1,250 ft) by 420 ft.

[@ThePeterDislikeShow]

I think that's where Taiwan's gold reserves are hidden in plain sight.

[@Shit_I_Missed.]

If this damper was solid gold it would weigh over a million kilograms. Gold reserves indeed.

[@thajoynt]

@LacrimaChristi777 This tuned mass damper was designed by Motioneering Inc. (motioneering.ca) part of RWDI Inc.

[@nodachiaki1]

the damper is designed to withstand the building movement due to the wind....not the earthquake... :)

[@priyesh07]

awesome video man.. u must be lucky to c the dampers moving.....

[@RatPfink66]

We get some idea of the damper's movement, but it is hard to see because the camera never stops moving.

[@CheatCodeForRage]

Their own website says it was designed by Motioneering, Inc. which is a Canadian company...

[@Pablillotron]

ok, first off, an earthquake doesn't have anything to do with a typhoon, and though the probability of BOTH occuring at the same time is extremely low, it could still happen, so you're incorrect on that. Second, I am not sure whether your comment about the 101's design is correct, but I'm inclined to doubt it since it would not be economically feasible to design for two events which have such a low probability of occuring at the same time.

[@imkaneforever]

what if it goes over slightly too far?

[@benjaboston]

haha- @:35 "thats not good." " i know" "thats not goood!" "i knooow!"

[@docsharp00]

please for oher peopl ewho make this kind of video: try to let more than 1 sec the camera fixed in one point, and do not move it... here it's really hard to see the ball moving because the camera do not stop moving too... anyway, that is impressive.

[@Pablillotron]

It was designed by two companies from the US, not from Taiwan, look it up

[@pwnageprata]

i was expecting something cool to happen, like spirits come shooting out of the ball to support the building.

[@HiAdrian]

Both scary and impressive!

[@TomMattin]

why isn't Taipei 101 in the guinness world record book?

[@jakllenW402]

I loved it there! I want to go back there!!!!!

[@SSJIndy]

of course, the BALL wasn't moving (much). The building was moving around it. Well, actually, it's ALL hurtling through space at many thousands of mile per hour.

[@o0otQoQTo0o]

@shuan3 Taipei 101 Architect: C.Y. Lee, country: Taiwan Structural Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti, country: USA

[@dorsk84]

Yea imgur sent me here. Oh cool the ball is moving... leaves building total devastation.

[@Jegorex]

Why do you think they went to the ball? They knew it is there to save them.

[@dan725]

No, he's right. Taipei101's structural and engineering was done by a New York-based firm Thorton Tomasetti. Construction was done by the Korean firm Sansung C&T Corporation (who's also responsible for the Petronas Towers, and the Burj Khalifa).

[@sidecarcn]

The only problem I have with the 101 tower is its designer. I can stand anything he does. This building could have looked much better.

[@xxwzaebd]

Great video!

[@838millionman]

This building is awesome

[@Edson6859]

The Kingdom Tower to pip Taipei 101 (1,670 ft) by 1,610 ft, Burj Dubai to pip Taipei 101 by 1,047 ft, the Sky Tree Tower to pip Taipei 101 by 410 ft and CN Tower (Canada), to pip Taipei 101 by 145 ft.

[@glazed6098]

2022?

[@Aliendear]

Taiwan had an earthquake this sat. 12/19/09. I wondered how it fared.

[@tamanklang]

amazing man...and dangerous too..when i'm been there...it wasen't moving

[@brillowpad1]

There is no fuckin way this thing is counterbalancing that big ass building! I honestly think its something engineers convinced themselves of to make them investors and Taiwan feel good, man if that buildinever did lean too far this WON'T stop it , they built it in an Earthquake zone and will have to face consequences if disaster strikes

[@scubthebub]

It is a passive system

[@goninanbl00d]

No, the pistons are just holding up the thing...

[@alphamone]

wow, impressive, but this video probably does the impressiveness of it no justice compaired to being there.

[@gperalta02]

WOW this is very impressive!! you should had sent this to CNN ireport

[@tkzzii]

it's 660 metric tons.

[@yugandali]

All very nice, but I don't want to be anywhere near 101 when there's an earthquake!!

[@bbly096]

@vaibhavd85 Google may 12 2008, at least google it... there was a earthquake that day that killed 80 000 people. How can you say it's fake? There was no tremor only because the earthquake was thousands of miles away.

[@Schlue79]

good job!!

[@funnylittlegirl12345]

this was on how do they do it

[@suomik1988]

As an engineer, I know that would be completely safe, but it would still make me throw up.

[@michaelmp5]

Wow you have never ever studied engineering before have you. with that thing moving they are save as could be.

[@tiga2001]

nice, I wish I was there to see it, too.

[@teledynepost]

taipei is in taiwan, earthquake was in sichuan, china. no buildings collapsed in taiwan. sorry. ASSembler

[@busylifemeto]

For the record its 730 Tons not 660 !!!!

[@rfnecio]

Imgur sent me

[@lizbdtz]

todo en el taipei es grande

[@DeryckT]

Way to go RWDI. They're the company that designed this damper.

[@khunopie]

Could Godzilla play pingpong with that ball?

[@isokessu]

tornados can't strike everywhere..

[@Aarow666]

Hello Imgurians :)

[@shreeyutshrestha4931]

+Aarow666 ...crisp rat

[@sav.labrant]

Hello imgurians once again! This video has been reposted 3 years later.

[@Xantylon74]

What Would happen if you cut this ball during an earthquake?

[@78kaira]

boom

[@DLBBALL]

It might collapse the floor, because even that little of space might allow that huge ball to punch through.

[@zoidburg5844]

660 ton ball MIGHT punch through? lol

[@ohhmygod89]

@jding19711 The taiwanese did not design or build the building lol. Its designed by americans and built by south koreans =)

[@omnipotentbird]

@rosafromluxemburg That's a ridiculous question

[@Pingstery]

Its 730 tons.

[@ipex80]

660 tons if for some reason the ropes broke goodbie tower lol

[@piyushsharma5177]

the oooo ssiii laaa ssstiion is nut guud

[@waengwang5313]

lol I'm chines and they were saying is this a real earthquake?

[@PhilippeLarcher]

no it's part of the attraction lol. Surprised no one applaused at the end, this feat of engineering kept them alive.

[@cptstubing]

@nycitygirl100 How are you HALF from Taiwan??? Was top or bottom half born somewhere else??

[@RoyClark93]

ethiopian09 this is not a shit technique the reason why the burj dubai doesn't require one of these is because dubai is an area of low siesmic activity and therfore only requires to be able to withstand wind. The Taipei 101 has to cope with both high winds and earthquakes so this is the perfect engineering to keep it upright and being able to be resistant to earthquake effects especially those induced by Love & Rayleigh Waves.

[@yugandali]

If you say so, but thanks anyway, I'll stay in the mountains!

[@Jellostyle]

@ohhmygod89 designed and produced by Taiwanese. Look up discovery channel and see for yourself.

[@123chunhou]

wow!i heard people saying earthwuake on chinese i speak chinese but don't know how to write in chinese i'm a ABC

[@DeryckT]

TMD

[@hijcmaddox1]

cool

[@permezabethke9109]

nice movie scene for bond!