Ferris Wheel CAE Structural Analysis｜HyperWorks

【 Background 】

       Taichung’s Lihpao Land purchased the 120-meter “Sky Dream” Ferris wheel from Fukuoka, Japan in 2009. Given Taiwan’s frequent earthquakes and typhoons, the Taichung City Government required a **comprehensive structural safety assessment** before permitting installation and operation.

 

【 Highlights 】

• A cross-disciplinary team of **structural, civil, mechanical engineers** and **Richin Technology** jointly completed the structural safety evaluation.
• Richin Technology performed structural analysis for key components including the **wheel rim, A-frame, base structure, and main hub**.
• “Sky Dream” became the **largest Ferris wheel in Taiwan** (4th largest in the world), now a major landmark in Taichung.

【Technical Highlights】

       Richin Technology performed structural calculations for the wheel rim, A-frame, base, and main hub, referencing both **mechanical and civil engineering codes**. The team provided strengthening recommendations, which were later reviewed by the Architects Association and related professional engineering committees.

       The biggest technical challenge was the **extremely large and complex model**. The wheel structure includes numerous support frames and mechanical components, with the center composed of pre-tensioned tensile rods. The analysis required considering the full system—including A-frame and foundation—along with complex loading conditions from regulations. This demanded **high-precision computation and advanced modeling expertise** to accurately capture global structural behavior.

 

【Results & Validation】

       A full FEM model was constructed for all major components, enabling realistic evaluation of the mechanical response. This provided confidence in the strengthening proposals delivered to the client.
       The complete reinforcement and simulation plan passed multi-disciplinary engineering review in **March 2013**, and the Ferris wheel officially began operations in **2017**.