Title: A comparative evaluation of two statistical analysis methods for damage detection using fibre optic sensor data

Authors: Masoud Malekzadeh; F. Necati Catbas

Addresses: Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering Department, University of Central Florida, 4000 Central Florida Blvd., Orlando, FL 32816, USA ' Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering Department, University of Central Florida, 4000 Central Florida Blvd., Orlando, FL 32816, USA

Abstract: One of the commonly used optic sensing technologies is a point sensor with Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG), which is employed with an in-house developed FBG interrogator. It is critical to couple such sensing capabilities with effective data analysis methods that can identify structural changes and detect possible damage. In this study, Robust Regression Analysis (RRA) and Cross Correlation Analysis (CCA) are employed to analyse strain data collected with FBG sensors that are installed on a 4-span bridge type structure. In order to test the efficiency of these non-parametric data analysis approaches, several tests are conducted with different damage scenarios in the laboratory environment. The efficiency of FBG sensors in conjunction with RRA and CCA algorithms for detection and localising damage are explored. Based on the findings, the RRA and CCA methods with FBGs can be expected to deliver promising results as to observing and detecting both local and global damage.

Keywords: structural health monitoring; fibre Bragg grating; damage detection; cross correlation analysis; CCA; robust regression analysis; RRA; statistical analysis; fibre optic sensors; optic sensing; strain data; FBG sensors; span bridges; bridge structures; damage localisation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRS.2014.069511

International Journal of Reliability and Safety, 2014 Vol.8 No.2/3/4, pp.135 - 155

Received: 14 Mar 2014
Accepted: 04 Oct 2014

Published online: 20 May 2015 *

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