Effect of 3D laser point spacing on cement concrete crack width measurement

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to examine the reliability of three-dimensional (3D) laser detection technology data density for crack width detection results of cement slabs. Four groups of cement concrete crack elevation data with a laser data density of 0.5–1.5 mm were obtained using an indoor 3D laser detection system, and 3D models were established. The nonlinear least squares method was applied to fit the fracture section, and the crack width was determined by the peak value analysis. The results demonstrate that the lateral spacing of laser points exerts a large impact on the mean and discrete degrees of cement concrete crack width detection results. The laser point spacing is positively correlated with crack identification errors. Insufficient laser accuracy leads to an overestimation of crack severity level and affects the accuracy of pavement damage condition evaluation. High-precision laser equipment exhibits certain reliability for detecting cement concrete crack width above 3 mm. In the actual pavement crack width detection process, the appropriate transverse spacing of laser points can be selected according to different error limit requirements to fulfill the requirements of both detection reliability and data processing efficiency. Suggestions for future research include expanding the experimental conditions, increasing the 3D laser point spacings, and selecting more road lanes and pavement materials to further examine the influential factors of pavement crack width measurement.