Base isolated/damping platforms for seismic protection of essential equipment - Negative-Stiffness Vibration Isolation Platform

Experimental studies on the seismic performance of a commercially available vibration isolation platform for protection of equipment are included in the testing sequence. The test specimen includes a commercially available vibration isolation platform, based in the negative stiffness (BM-4 platform, developed by Minus K Technology Inc.) supporting generic-sensitive equipment. A sound-vibration-measurement piece of equipment with a total payload of 54 pounds was supported on the platform. The system was subjected to low intensity earthquake excitations to simulate a variety of ground and floor accelerations of multistory buildings under low intensity earthquake records.