The use of rocking walls with seismic fuses is an efficient solution for mass timber structures. This paper presents and compares mass timber wall systems with different types of seismic fuses. These devices range from conventional pinching connectors to self-centring friction connections. Pros, cons and performance measures of each system are described and discussed. Moreover, a preliminary design procedure based on the Direct Displacement Based Design (DDBD) approach is used to specify and size the damping devices. This approach was chosen to assure that the lateral displacements of the systems are appropriately controlled respecting the considered damage limit states.

Numerical models are accordingly developed and subjected to non-linear static pushover and dynamic time-history analyses. The results are discussed in relation with the performance objectives considered for different systems. The results confirmed that the use of low damage friction connections as a substitute for traditional pinching connectors could considerably improve the seismic performance of mass timber structures. Nevertheless, with some of these systems, there is potential for having residual displacements that could compromise the post-earthquake performance of the system.