Leiterquerschnitten

Leiterquerschnitten is a technical term used in German engineering and technical literature to describe the cross-sections of ladder-like structures. The word combines Leiter (ladder) and Querschnitt (cross-section). In this sense, a ladder-like structure consists of two long parallel rails connected by regularly spaced transverse members, called rungs.

A Leiterquerschnitt is the intersection of such a structure with a plane perpendicular to its longitudinal axis. The resulting shape typically shows two parallel lines (the rails) with several connectors between them, depending on the cutting height, effectively a two-rail section with visible rungs.

Applications include the structural analysis of scaffolding, lattice towers, and braced frames where ladder-like subassemblies occur. By examining Leiterquerschnitten, engineers estimate cross-sectional properties such as area, second moment of area, and shear distribution, which feed into bending, buckling, and shear calculations. In material modelling, simplified ladder sections can be used in beam- or plate-based approaches, reducing a 3D problem to a set of 2D sections.

Modelling considerations include irregular rung spacing, variable rail thickness, connections at joints, and the effect of stiffeners. In design practice, standard ladder profiles are catalogued to ensure predictable mechanical behavior under load.

See also: Querschnitt, Leitergraph, Gitterstruktur, Buckling.