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Using inertial measurement units originally developed for biomechanics for modal testing of civil engineering structures

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posted on 2018-01-04, 10:12 authored by David Hester, James Brownjohn, Mateusz Bocian, Yan Xu, Antonino Quattrone
This paper explores the use of wireless Inertial Measurement Units (IMU) originally developed for bio-mechanical research applications for modal testing of civil engineering infrastructure. Due to their biomechanics origin, these devices combine a triaxial accelerometer with gyroscopes and magnetometers for orientation, as well as on board data logging capability and wireless communication for optional data streaming and to coordinate synchronisation with other IMUs in a network. The motivation for application to civil structures is that their capabilities and simple operating procedures make them suitable for modal testing of many types of civil infrastructure of limited dimension including footbridges and floors while also enabling recovering of dynamic forces generated and applied to structures by moving humans. To explore their capabilities in civil applications, the IMUs are evaluated through modal tests on three different structures with increasing challenge of spatial and environmental complexity. These are, a full-scale floor mock-up in a laboratory, a short span road bridge and a seven story office tower. For each case, the results from the IMUs are compared with those from a conventio nal wired system to identify the limitations. The main conclusion is that the relatively high noise floor and limited communication range will not be a serious limitation in the great majority of typical civil modal test applications where convenient operation is a significant advantage over conventional wired systems.

Funding

The research leading to these results has received funding from the People Programme (Marie Curie Actions) of the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement n° 330195. The authors would also like to acknowledge the Bridge Section of The Engineering Design Group of Devon County Council led by Kevin Dentith BSc, CEng, FICE, for their support and assistance with this work.

History

Citation

Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, 2018, 104, pp. 776-798

Author affiliation

/Organisation/COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING/Department of Engineering

Version

  • AM (Accepted Manuscript)

Published in

Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing

Publisher

Elsevier

issn

0888-3270

eissn

1096-1216

Acceptance date

2017-11-20

Copyright date

2017

Available date

2018-12-01

Publisher version

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0888327017306179

Notes

The file associated with this record is under embargo until 12 months after publication, in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. The full text may be available through the publisher links provided above.

Language

en

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