Macro-elements or Finite elements?
Various seismic calculation methods for masonry buildings can be found in the technical literature (e.g. POR method, Finite Element Method, FME Frame by Macro Element). The POR Method implies strong restrictions, significantly reducing its application limits. As an example, the requirement of an infinitely rigid slab hardly applies to reality in existing buildings. The Finite Element Method is in certain cases very useful, but since it is mesh dependent, it is strictly dependent on the definition of the model. Moreover, it is not explicitly considered by the existing codes and it is not clear how the stress values at some points could be used to check the failure of an entire wall panel in the above described ways.
