## 6 Conclusions  
1. We conclude that end-fixed hangers consisting of parallel seven-wire strands of HTABs and TABs with a floating deck structure can produce significant bending deformation based on the investigations of types of hangers, boundary conditions, and arch bridge structures. The bending deformation of hangers can exert an adverse influence on the strength of the hangers.
2. We propose that lateral bending causes the uneven loading of the parallel seven-wire strands in hangers based on the study of the mechanical model of hangers under lateral bending deformation. The seven-wire strand that is located at the outer edge of the hangers will bear the maximum bending stress and it can be regarded as under the most unfavorable loading conditions in all the parallel seven-wire strands. The properties of the seven-wire strands under the most unfavorable loading conditions and the maximum bending stress that they bear decide the safety of the hangers.
3. FEM developed and verified the theoretical formulation for the lateral bending angle and maximum bending stress in hangers. According to the results of the calculations using the formulas and FEM, the bending of hangers is mainly caused by the different displacements along the longitudinal direction of the bridge at both ends of the hangers and the bending that is caused by the rotation of the bridge deck can be ignored. Moreover, FEM and tests obtained the ultimate tensile strength of the seven-wire strands under lateral bending. The S-N curve that could reflect the fatigue properties of seven-wire stands under lateral bending is also obtained based on the ultimate tensile strength of the seven-wire strands under lateral bending. It was found that the ultimate tensile strength and fatigue properties of the seven-wire strands significantly decrease when lateral bending is considered. Therefore, the adverse influence of lateral bending on hangers cannot be ignored, and a method for checking the strength of seven-wire strands in hangers considering lateral bending is proposed.
4. Several measures are proposed for mitigating the adverse influence of lateral bending on hangers, such as using tied arch structures as much as possible, replacing fixed connections with hinged connections for short hangers, and using a jointless bridge structure. Synthetically speaking, using tied arch structures might produce fewer side effects is more strongly recommended than using other methods.  
**Author Contributions:** [PERSON] designed the experiments and funded the paper. [PERSON] conducted the experiments, analyzed the data, and wrote the paper. [PERSON] audited the content. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.  
**Funding:** This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 51868006), the scientific research foundation of Guangxi university (XTZ150324); the key R & D project of Guangxi Science and Technology Program (grant no. AB17292018); the cultivation program jointly funded by Guangxi natural science foundation of China (2018 GXNSFAA138067); and the High-level innovation team and outstanding scholar plan of Guangxi high colleges.  
**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.