Structural Health Monitoring Systems - Cowi

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The Stonecuttersrs Bridge in Hong Kong
will be equipped with an advanced Wind
and Structural Health Monitoring System
designed by COWI.
Actors/Stakeholders
The planning of structural monitoring
systems must take into account
the interests of the different actors
in a bridge project. The design-,
construction- and operation phases
must be considered according to
these interests. The objectives,
requirements and deliveries deciding
the structure of the monitoring
system may change depending on
whom and what phase the system is
supposed to support.
The typical groups involved
during the construction and service
lifetime of a bridge structure are as
follows
• Owner
• Designer
• Contractor
• Operator
• Researchers/Universities
Based on the large experience of
COWI in designing major bridges
world wide the structural monitoring
objectives for these actors are in
general known by COWI.
Structural Monitoring System
Objectives
The purpose of Structural Monitoring
is the examination and location
of structural condition and possible
damage in the structural elements of
a structure set into the context of
user objectives, requirements and
deliveries.
The initial system analysis shall
cover and answer the following
points according to which user types
and phases in the service lifetime the
system shall support;
• Objective
• Requirements
• Basis
• Scope
• Interfaces
• Deliveries
Structural Monitoring System
Activities
Technically the developed structural
monitoring system will consists of
three major parts to meet this way
to organise the activities:
• Sensing modules placed on the
structure. These modules consist
of various types of sensors
depending on the nature of the
structure. This also includes a
signal collection and conditioning
unit.
• A data communication system for
the transfer of the collected data
to a remote computer.
• A database application, which
collects, stores and processes the
sensor data in real time, in order
to provide an evaluation of the
condition of the structure based
on the above mentioned application
areas
For all bridge structures where the
need for a structural monitoring
system is considered there must be
carried out an initial analyse to map
the deliveries the bridge operator
needs for his particular bridge.
Hereby the extent of the onstructure
installations and the
functions of the data management
and control can be established in
order to secure the most reliable,
easy to operate and cost efficient
system to design and install.