Transmissibility-based operational modal analysis: A unified scheme and uncertainty quantification

Abstract

The transmissibility-based Operational Modal Analysis (OMA) technique has attracted substantial research interest over the past two decades due to its capability to extract structural modal parameters in the presence of non-white excitation. The transmissibility function used in OMA can be categorized as Response Transmissibility (RT) and Power Spectral Density Transmissibility (PSDT). Modal parameters can be identified by combining RTs from multiple load cases or PSDTs from multiple transfer outputs. Nevertheless, the mathematical formulations and implementation procedures of the various RT-based and PSDT-based methods exhibit significant differences. Furthermore, the uncertainty associated with modal parameter estimates is rarely assessed in these methods. This work aims to propose a scheme that unifies various transmissibility-based OMA algorithms through a consistent parametric formulation. Within this scheme, a universal parametric model and a standardized implementation procedure are developed to accommodate two types of transmissibility in both time and frequency domains and six OMA algorithms; additionally, a generalized framework for quantifying the uncertainties associated with modal parameter estimates is provided. The proposed scheme is finally validated using a planar truss structure.