Design of falling rock preventive countermeasure based on three-dimensional simulation

To rationally design rockfall countermeasures, detailed rockfall behavior must be predicted using numerical simulations based on the conditions of slopes and rockfalls. In this study, we perform a rockfall simulation using discontinuous deformation analysis. This method is used to analyze the motion between blocks composed of polygons of arbitrary elastic bodies; furthermore, the energy conservation law and the uniqueness/convergence of the solution are guaranteed for the entire analysis target. Additionally, the rockfall shape is reproduced in detail. Both the rockfall shape and a parameter known as the velocity energy ratio, which indicates the decay of energy at the collision time of the rockfall, significantly affect the rockfall behavior. In this study, we model the actual slope shape from data measured via airborne laser and quantitatively evaluate the effect via simulations by changing the rockfall shape and velocity energy ratio. In this paper, we consider how to use the simulation for the design of rockfall countermeasures based on the results such as the change in the amount of jumping due to the difference in slope shape, geology, and rockfall shape.