Determination of bearing capacity of the soil in-situ.
Designing for static loads on spread footings.
Repetitive and nonrepetitive plate loading tests of soils and flexible pavements

The Plate Bearing Test is essentially a model test of foundations. It gives the load deformation characteristics for determining the ultimate bearing capacity of foundations. This test is a standard technique for determining bearing capacity of soils and the results of other methods are compared and calibrated with the values obtained from the plate bearing test. In this method, a steel plate is subjected to a gradual increment of load and the corresponding settlement is noted. The ultimate bearing capacity is taken as the load at which the settlement increases at a rapid rate.

TO-157