• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.6 no.5_6
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• pp.689-709
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• 2010

In this paper, a low cost, low power but multifunctional wireless sensor node is presented for the impedance-based SHM using piezoelectric sensors. Firstly, a miniaturized impedance measuring chip device is utilized for low cost and low power structural excitation/sensing. Then, structural damage detection/sensor self-diagnosis algorithms are embedded on the on-board microcontroller. This sensor node uses the power harvested from the solar energy to measure and analyze the impedance data. Simultaneously it monitors temperature on the structure near the piezoelectric sensor and battery power consumption. The wireless sensor node is based on the TinyOS platform for operation, and users can take MATLAB$^{(R)}$ interface for the control of the sensor node through serial communication. In order to validate the performance of this multifunctional wireless impedance sensor node, a series of experimental studies have been carried out for detecting loose bolts and crack damages on lab-scale steel structural members as well as on real steel bridge and building structures. It has been found that the proposed sensor nodes can be effectively used for local wireless health monitoring of structural components and for constructing a low-cost and multifunctional SHM system as "place and forget" wireless sensors.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2011.04a
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• pp.36-39
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• 2011

In this paper, performance of EMI interface and multi-channel wireless impedance sensor node is evaluated for SHM on bolted connection. To achieve the objective, following approaches are implemented. Firstly, an interface washer is designed to monitor loosened bolt through the variation in EMI of interface washer due to change in preload in bolt. Secondly, a multi-channel wireless impedance sensor node based on Imote2 platform is designed for automated and cost-efficient impedance-based SHM on bolted connections. Finally, performance of the multi-channel wireless impedance sensor node and the interface washer are experimentally validated for a lab-scale bolted connection model. A damage monitoring method using RMSD index of EMI signatures is utilized to examine the strength of each individual bolted connection.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.616-625
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• 2011

Ensuring the designed prestress force is very important for the safety of prestressed concrete bridge. The loss of prestress force in tendon could significantly reduce load carrying capacity of the structure. In this study, an automated prestress-loss monitoring system for prestressed concrete girder using PZT-interface and wireless impedance sensor node is presented. The following approaches are carried out to achieve the objective. Firstly, wireless impedance sensor nodes are designed for automated impedance-based monitoring technique. The sensor node is mounted on the high-performance Imote2 sensor platform to fulfill high operating speed, low power requirement and large storage memory. Secondly, a smart PZT-interface designed for monitoring prestress force is described. A linear regression model is established to predict prestress-loss. Finally, a system of the PZT-interface interacted with the wireless sensor node is evaluated from a lab-scale tendon-anchorage connection of a prestressed concrete girder.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.6 no.5_6
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• pp.661-673
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• 2010

This paper presents recent developments in an extremely compact, wireless impedance sensor node (the WID3, $\underline{W}$ireless $\underline{I}$mpedance $\underline{D}$evice) for use in high-frequency impedance-based structural health monitoring (SHM), sensor diagnostics and validation, and low-frequency (< ~1 kHz) vibration data acquisition. The WID3 is equipped with an impedance chip that can resolve measurements up to 100 kHz, a frequency range ideal for many SHM applications. An integrated set of multiplexers allows the end user to monitor seven piezoelectric sensors from a single sensor node. The WID3 combines on-board processing using a microcontroller, data storage using flash memory, wireless communications capabilities, and a series of internal and external triggering options into a single package to realize a truly comprehensive, self-contained wireless active-sensor node for SHM applications. Furthermore, we recently extended the capability of this device by implementing low-frequency analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters so that the same device can measure structural vibration data. The compact sensor node collects relatively low-frequency acceleration measurements to estimate natural frequencies and operational deflection shapes, as well as relatively high-frequency impedance measurements to detect structural damage. Experimental results with application to SHM, sensor diagnostics and low-frequency vibration data acquisition are presented.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.246-259
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• 2011

This study presents a structural health monitoring (SHM) method for bolted connections by using multi-channel wireless impedance sensor nodes and multiple PZT-interfaces. To achieve the objective, the following approaches are implemented. Firstly, a PZT-interface is designed to monitor bolt loosening in bolted connection based on variation of electro-mechanical(EM) impedance signatures. Secondly, a wireless impedance sensor node is designed for autonomous, cost-efficient and multi-channel monitoring. For the sensor platform, Imote2 is selected on the basis of its high operating speed, low power requirement and large storage memory. Finally, the performance of the wireless sensor node and the PZT-interfaces is experimentally evaluated for a bolt-connection model Damage monitoring method using root mean square deviation(RMSD) index of EM impedance signatures is utilized to estimate the strength of the bolted joint.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.21-31
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• 2010

In this study, a technique that uses wireless impedance sensor nodes is proposed to monitor tensile force of structural cable. To achieve this goal, the following approaches were implemented. First, a wireless impedance sensor node was designed for automated and cost-efficient prestress-loss monitoring. Second, an impedance-based algorithm was embedded in the wireless impedance sensor node for autonomous structural health monitoring of structural cables. Third, a tensile force monitoring technique that uses an interface plate for structural cables was proposed to overcome the limitations of the wireless impedance sensor node such as its narrow-band measurable frequency ranges. Finally, the applicability of the wireless impedance sensor node and the technique that uses the interface washer were evaluated in a lab-scaled prestressed concrete (PSC) girder model with internal and external tendons for which several prestress-loss scenarios were experimentally monitored with the wireless impedance sensor nodes.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.1-10
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• 2010

In this study, hybrid smart sensor nodes were developed for the autonomous structural health monitoring of prestressed concrete (PSC) girders. In order to achieve the objective, the following approaches were implemented. First, we show how two types of smart sensor nodes for the hybrid health monitoring were developed. One was an acceleration-based smart sensor node using an MEMS accelerometer to monitor the overall damage in concrete girders. The other was an impedance-based smart sensor node for monitoring the local damage in prestressing tendons. Second, a hybrid monitoring algorithm using these smart sensor nodes is proposed for the autonomous structural health monitoring of PSC girders. Finally, we show how the performance of the developed system was evaluated using a lab-scaled PSC girder model for which dynamic tests were performed on a series of prestress-loss cases and girder damage cases.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.6 no.5_6
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• pp.675-687
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• 2010

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is the science and technology of monitoring and assessing the condition of aerospace, civil and mechanical infrastructures using a sensing system integrated into the structure. Impedance-based SHM measures impedance of a structure using a PZT (Lead Zirconate Titanate) patch. This paper presents a low-power wireless autonomous and active SHM node called Autonomous SHM Sensor 2 (ASN-2), which is based on the impedance method. In this study, we incorporated three methods to save power. First, entire data processing is performed on-board, which minimizes radio transmission time. Considering that the radio of a wireless sensor node consumes the highest power among all modules, reduction of the transmission time saves substantial power. Second, a rectangular pulse train is used to excite a PZT patch instead of a sinusoidal wave. This eliminates a digital-to-analog converter and reduces the memory space. Third, ASN-2 senses the phase of the response signal instead of the magnitude. Sensing the phase of the signal eliminates an analog-to-digital converter and Fast Fourier Transform operation, which not only saves power, but also enables us to use a low-end low-power processor. Our SHM sensor node ASN-2 is implemented using a TI MSP430 microcontroller evaluation board. A cluster of ASN-2 nodes forms a wireless network. Each node wakes up at a predetermined interval, such as once in four hours, performs an SHM operation, reports the result to the central node wirelessly, and returns to sleep. The power consumption of our ASN-2 is 0.15 mW during the inactive mode and 18 mW during the active mode. Each SHM operation takes about 13 seconds to consume 236 mJ. When our ASN-2 operates once in every four hours, it is estimated to run for about 2.5 years with two AAA-size batteries ignoring the internal battery leakage.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.145-164
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• 2012

In this paper, solar-powered, multi-scale, vibration-impedance sensor node on Imote2 platform is presented for hybrid structural health monitoring (SHM) in cable-stayed bridge. In order to achieve the objective, the following approaches are proposed. Firstly, vibration- and impedance-based hybrid SHM methods are briefly described. Secondly, the multi-scale vibration and impedance sensor node on Imote2-platform is presented on the design of hardware components and embedded software for vibration- and impedance-based SHM. In this approach, a solar-powered energy harvesting is implemented for autonomous operation of the smart sensor nodes. Finally, the feasibility and practicality of the smart sensor-based SHM system is evaluated on a full-scale cable-stayed bridge, Hwamyung Bridge in Korea. Successful level of wireless communication and solar-power supply for smart sensor nodes are verified. Also, vibration and impedance responses measured from the target bridge which experiences various weather conditions are examined for the robust long-term monitoring capability of the smart sensor system.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.489-504
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• 2012

For the safety of prestressed structures such as cable-stayed bridges and prestressed concrete bridges, it is very important to ensure the prestress force of cable or tendon. The loss of prestress force could significantly reduce load carrying capacity of the structure and even result in structural collapse. The objective of this study is to present a smart PZT-interface for wireless impedance-based prestress-loss monitoring in tendon-anchorage connection. Firstly, a smart PZT-interface is newly designed for sensitively monitoring of electro-mechanical impedance changes in tendon-anchorage subsystem. To analyze the effect of prestress force, an analytical model of tendon-anchorage is described regarding to the relationship between prestress force and structural parameters of the anchorage contact region. Based on the analytical model, an impedance-based method for monitoring of prestress-loss is conducted using the impedance-sensitive PZT-interface. Secondly, wireless impedance sensor node working on Imote2 platforms, which is interacted with the smart PZT-interface, is outlined. Finally, experiment on a lab-scale tendon-anchorage of a prestressed concrete girder is conducted to evaluate the performance of the smart PZT-interface along with the wireless impedance sensor node on prestress-loss detection. Frequency shift and cross correlation deviation of impedance signature are utilized to estimate impedance variation due to prestress-loss.