Abstract
The accurate measurement of diverse displacements of structures is an important index for the evaluation of a structure’s safety. In this study, a comparative analysis was conducted to determine the integrated RTK-GPS/accelerometer method that can provide the most precise structure displacement measurements. For this purpose, three methods of calculating the dynamic displacements from the acceleration data were comparatively analyzed. In addition, two methods of determining dynamic, static, and quasi-static displacements by integrating the displacements measured from the RTK-GPS system and the accelerometer were also comparatively analyzed. To ensure precise comparison results, a cantilever beam was manufactured onto which diverse types of displacements were generated to evaluate the measurement accuracy by method. Linear variable differential transformer (LVDT) measurements were used as references for the evaluation to ensure accuracy. The study results showed that the most suitable method of measuring the dynamic displacement with the accelerometer was to calculate the displacement by filtering and double-integrating the acceleration data using the FIR band-pass filter. The integration method that uses frequency-based displacement extraction was most appropriate for the integrated RTK-GPS/accelerometer method of comprehensively measuring the dynamic, static, and quasi-static displacements.
Highlights
With the development of design technology, civil structures are increasingly being designed with thinner, lighter, and more flexible designs
These figures indicate that the real-time kinematic global positioning system (RTK-GPS) measurements are relatively accurate with respect to the quasi-static displacements that were generated in the test, but not with respect to the dynamic displacements that were generated at a 3 Hz frequency due to the limitation in the measurement frequency
The Linear variable differential transformer (LVDT) measurements were directly compared with the results of the displacement estimation methods
Summary
With the development of design technology, civil structures are increasingly being designed with thinner, lighter, and more flexible designs. Most civil structures are constantly exposed to diverse natural and environmental conditions, including strong winds, earthquakes, and tsunamis, and to abnormal ultimate loads. Abnormal ultimate loading may even cause structures to collapse. This bridge was the third longest suspension bridge in the US, and it collapsed within months of opening due to unexpected strong winds, which were not considered in the design stage. It is important to monitor and evaluate the structural integrity of the main infrastructure. The structural integrity of many items can be evaluated, but displacement is generally used. Precise displacement measurement is required to ensure the reliable evaluation of a structure’s condition [1,2,3]
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