Synopsis
By providing an overview of the development of modern friction dampers, this article aims to raise awareness and explore the state-of-the-art in the field of seismic structural control. This includes a look at how friction brakes can be regulated during an earthquake to best control structural responses. Only now is the technology becoming available to do this at high speed and low cost. After examining the passive use of friction dampers, the ability to incorporate semi-active control is explored, with a particular focus on the control algorithms used within the dampers. Here, the need for further comparison between proposed algorithms is highlighted. The article also pays attention to the practical considerations involved in the use of semi-active friction dampers in practice, before concluding that seismic engineers should expect to see the use of semi-actively controlled devices coming into play within the next twenty years.