معرفی
Peter Van den Broeck is a Professor and Department Vice Chair in the Department of Civil Engineering at KU Leuven's Faculty of Engineering Technology. He holds multiple leadership roles including Head of the Structural Mechanics Division in Ghent, Contact Person for Structural Mechanics at Ghent and Aalst Campuses, and member of the Division Digital and Sustainable Civil Engineering. His institutional affiliations extend to the LISS – KU Leuven Institute of Sports Science.
His research focuses on Structural Dynamics and Human-Structure Interaction, particularly in footbridge engineering. Key research areas include human-induced vibrations, dynamics of civil structures, vibration serviceability assessment, and pedestrian-bridge interaction phenomena. His work combines experimental validation with numerical modeling to address challenges in footbridge design under running and crowd loading conditions.
Current research projects demonstrate his active grant portfolio:
- An integrated static-dynamic structural optimization approach for footbridge design (2023-2026, Co-promotor)
- Design methodology for contemporary footbridges including human-structure effects (2022-2026, Promotor)
- Numerical and experimental study of footbridge vibrations induced by running (2020-2025, Promotor)
His publication record shows a strong trend toward experimental validation of human-structure interaction phenomena, particularly regarding running-induced vibrations on footbridges. Recent work emphasizes full-scale measurements, load model development, and the impact of human-human interaction on structural response. His research bridges civil engineering and biomechanics through motion capture and force reconstruction techniques.
Teaching responsibilities span multiple courses including Finite Element Method, Dynamics of Structures, Steel Structures, and various Engineering Projects. He supervises Master's Theses in Civil Engineering and Geomatics, with emphasis on structural mechanics applications.
As part of the LISS institute, he contributes to interdisciplinary sports science research, particularly regarding human motion analysis and its structural implications. His work on the Eeklo Footbridge has established benchmark datasets for pedestrian-induced vibration studies.
