lateral earth pressure
Enable an agent to recognise, characterise and assess lateral earth pressure for a specified ground-structure configuration, loading condition and stage of movement.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
6 bundles · 11 layers · 18 findings · 28 questions
Pressure meaning and components Establish what quantity an instance represents and where it acts.
Reference surface and direction
Locate the pressure and define its orientation.
Lateral component definition
Record whether the instance describes horizontal stress within soil or a component of traction on an interface, especially where the wall is inclined or frictional.
- On which soil plane or structure surface is pressure defined, and in which direction is it resolved? definition
- Does the reported quantity include interface shear or only the normal component? boundary
Effective, water and total pressure
Specify the stress convention and separate contributions.
Stress component accounting
For a saturated effective-stress representation, total normal pressure combines effective soil pressure and pore-water pressure. Record the applicable convention explicitly. Reference: [FHWA Soils and Foundations, Volume I](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/engineering/geotech/pubs/nhi06088.pdf).
- Is the profile expressed in effective or total stress, and where is pore-water pressure represented? definition
- What evidence supports the water-pressure profile and any hydrostatic assumption? provenance
Movement and mobilisation Relate pressure state to restraint, deformation and stress history.
Restraint and limit states
Distinguish constrained conditions from movement toward limiting states.
Movement-compatible pressure state
Record the basis for assigning at-rest, active, passive or intermediate conditions. Active and passive limits concern different directions of relative movement. Reference: [FHWA Soils and Foundations, Volume II](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/engineering/geotech/pubs/nhi06089.pdf).
- What restraint and direction of soil-structure movement support the selected pressure state? boundary
- What displacement or rotation evidence supports full mobilisation rather than an intermediate state? measurement
Stress path and stage
Attach pressure to a loading history and identifiable stage.
History-dependent pressure
Record excavation, backfilling, support installation, compaction and unloading as possible explanations of the pressure state; do not infer the entire history from current geometry.
- Which construction or service stage does this pressure distribution represent? provenance
- Which prior loading, compaction or movement events must be retained when updating the estimate? action
Ground, water and imposed loads Capture the inputs and boundary conditions that generate the pressure distribution.
Soil and interface controls
Relate the pressure estimate to material properties and geometry.
Compatible ground parameters
Require layer-specific inputs, their stress basis and the interface assumptions used by the chosen method.
- Which layer thicknesses, unit weights and strength parameters were used, and how were they established? provenance
- How are ground slope, wall inclination, interface friction and restricted backfill width represented? boundary
Water, surcharge and transients
Identify loading and hydraulic scenarios beyond soil self-weight.
Scenario-specific pressure contributions
Keep surcharge, groundwater, compaction and dynamic effects traceable to explicit scenarios, including whether contributions can be combined by the selected method.
- What surcharge magnitude, footprint, setback and duration apply to this scenario? measurement
- Which drainage failure, groundwater change or dynamic loading scenarios require a separate pressure estimate? action
Estimation method and validity Expose how pressure is operationalised and where that representation is defensible.
Theory and coefficient selection
Document the method and the meanings of its parameters.
Method-assumption match
Record the selected Rankine, Coulomb, at-rest correlation, numerical or other formulation with its precise version and assumptions; method names alone do not establish applicability.
- Which source, equation or implementation defines the method and coefficient used? provenance
- Which assumptions about geometry, drainage, strength and movement are satisfied, uncertain or violated? boundary
Physical profile versus design envelope
Distinguish estimates of local stress from prescribed representations used to design support systems.
Representation purpose
Identify whether a profile represents measured stress, a calculated field or an apparent pressure envelope, and record the uses authorised by its source.
- Is this distribution intended to describe actual local pressure or to allocate design loads to supports? definition
- What restrictions govern using this representation to infer local pressure, total thrust or support reactions? boundary
Resultants, observations and use Translate pressure into traceable actions and assess its evidential support.
Distribution to resultant
Maintain the relationship between pressure profiles and derived forces.
Traceable earth thrust
Record the integration surface, force direction and line of action, distinguishing per-unit-length results from forces on a finite surface.
- Over what depth, width and surface geometry is the pressure integrated? measurement
- Which resultant, application point and component breakdown should be passed to the linked structural model? action
Observation and uncertainty
Evaluate measurements and identify decisions sensitive to uncertain inputs.
Comparable pressure evidence
Compare predictions with observations only after aligning sensor orientation, stress component, location, calibration and construction stage; retain unresolved discrepancies.
- What instrument or inference produced the observation, and what quantity did it actually measure? provenance
- Which uncertain inputs or prediction-observation discrepancies require further investigation before this pressure estimate is used? action
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Check these first
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these check these first hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Kinds and varieties
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Standards and regulation
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Typical measurements
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Regional variation
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of lateral earth pressure this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Cross-cutting context
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- XCT
- Domain
- XCT.STA
What it is Filled
Lateral earth pressure is the normal stress exerted by a soil mass against a retaining surface or across a plane within the soil, whose magnitude depends on soil properties, stress history, drainage conditions, applied loads and deformation constraints.
In scope
- Lateral pressure within soil and at soil-structure interfaces, with direction and reference surface specified.
- At-rest, active, passive and partially mobilised pressure states.
- Separation of effective soil pressure, pore-water pressure and total lateral pressure.
- Pressure distributions associated with soil layering, surcharge, compaction and construction sequence.
- Methods, measurements and assumptions used to estimate pressure and its resultant.
Out of scope
- Complete retaining-wall, basement, excavation-support or foundation models.
- General soil classification and constitutive behaviour except as referenced pressure inputs.
- Groundwater flow modelling beyond the pore-pressure conditions supplied to this model.
- Complete structural capacity, sliding, overturning and global stability assessments.
- Bulk solids pressure in silos and fluid-only hydrostatic pressure.
Why it exists Filled
Enable an agent to recognise, characterise and assess lateral earth pressure for a specified ground-structure configuration, loading condition and stage of movement.
Distinguishing features Filled
- An instance must identify a lateral stress component or traction on a specified surface; vertical overburden stress alone is an input, not lateral earth pressure.
- Pressure is force per area and may vary with position; integrated earth thrust is a derived force with a line of action.
- The pressure state depends on deformation and loading history, so a soil description alone does not determine whether active, passive or at-rest conditions apply.
- Effective soil pressure must be distinguished from water pressure and their total; a water-only pressure distribution does not instantiate the soil contribution.
- An earth-pressure coefficient is a dimensionless relationship used under stated assumptions, not the pressure itself or a universally fixed soil property.
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Approve a retaining wall or excavation design without a qualified engineer.
- Use assumed soil parameters without saying they are assumed.
- Ignore water pressure, surcharge loads or nearby foundations in a calculation.
- Hide monitoring readings that show movement or cracking.
Only with a human decision
- Approving designs and changes to temporary works such as trench support.
- Deciding to keep people working in an excavation after warning signs.
May
- Calculate and report lateral earth pressure for a design under a qualified engineer's supervision.
- Monitor and report readings from instruments on retaining structures it is authorized to read.
Moral aspects Filled
- Retaining wall and trench collapses kill workers and damage neighbouring property.
- Engineering judgement carries legal responsibility that cannot be passed to software.
Who is affected
- Construction workers
- Neighbours of excavations
- Users of roads and buildings near walls
Owners Filled
Steward
The designer and the owner of each retaining structure; building control authorities check designs.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q55619950 - registry parent class
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.lateral-earth-pressure
- Wikidata: Q1022422 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1022422)
Direct properties not applicable Not applicable
- Pressure component and stress basis: Horizontal stress or interface-normal traction; effective or total stress; water contribution identified separately
- Pressure distribution: kPa as a function of depth, position and time or construction stage
- Mobilisation state: At-rest, active limit, passive limit, intermediate, cyclic or unresolved
- Lateral earth-pressure coefficient: Dimensionless; K0, Ka, Kp or a defined intermediate coefficient, with numerator and denominator stated
- Ground and boundary configuration: Linked soil layers, ground slope, interface inclination, retained height, wall roughness and nearby boundaries
- Relative soil-structure movement: Displacement in mm, rotation in radians and displacement/height ratio; direction and mode recorded
- Drainage and pore-pressure condition: Drained, undrained or transient; pore-pressure profile in kPa
- Loading and stress history: Linked surcharge geometry, excavation stages, compaction, overconsolidation and dynamic loading
- Pressure resultant: kN/m for a section or kN for a defined surface; direction and application point in m
- Evidence and applicability: Measured, analytically estimated, numerically estimated or prescribed envelope; source, assumptions and uncertainty recorded
Plane XCT: no invented physical properties.
Recognition not applicable Not applicable
Not applicable
Lateral earth pressure is a stress quantity without a visible form, and visible deformation alone cannot identify its magnitude or state.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- Classify a proposed pressure state against the documented movement and restraint conditions.
- Select and qualify a pressure-estimation method against ground geometry, drainage and loading history.
- Construct comparable effective, water and total pressure profiles without double counting.
- Integrate a pressure profile into a resultant and line of action for a linked structural assessment.
- Compare predicted and measured pressures at matching positions and construction stages.
- Flag unsupported passive resistance, incompatible stress assumptions or missing groundwater scenarios.
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Underestimated pressure can topple or crack walls.
- Heavy rain can raise water pressure behind walls and trigger failure.
- Trench collapse can bury workers.
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- EN 1997 Eurocode 7: Geotechnical design, European Committee for Standardization (CEN).
Context of use required Filled
- Lateral earth pressure is considered where soil bears against retaining walls, basement walls, buried structures and excavation supports.
- Its assessment supports structural design and stability evaluation under specified soil, groundwater, loading and movement conditions.
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q1022422: lateral earth pressure - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Lateral earth pressure - general description of the item
Open questions
- Should this registry entry cover both in-situ horizontal soil stress and soil-structure contact pressure as explicit subtypes, and how does the existing catalogue separate them?
- Which references and applicability limits should govern movement thresholds for active and passive mobilisation across different soils and wall deformation modes?
- How should unsaturated soils, suction, cohesive tension zones and water-filled cracks be represented without implying that a saturated effective-stress formulation always applies?
- Which extensions are needed for seismic loading, liquefaction, cyclic movement and three-dimensional confinement?
- Which jurisdiction-specific sources should govern apparent pressure envelopes, characteristic values and design values while preserving their distinction from physical pressure estimates?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q1022422/spec.json