Dynamic performance verification of the Rędziński Bridge using portable camera-based vibration monitoring systems

Abstract

The assessment of dynamic performance of large-scale bridges typically relies on the deployment of wired instrumentation systems requiring direct contact with the tested structures. This can obstruct their operation and create unnecessary risks to the involved personnel and equipment. These problems can be readily avoided by using non-contact instrumentation systems. However, the cost of off-the-shelf commercial products often prevents their wide adoption in engineering practice. To this end, the dynamic performance of the biggest one-pylon cable-stayed bridge in Poland is investigated based on data from a consumer-grade digital camera and open access image-processing algorithms. The quality of these data is benchmarked against data obtained from conventional wired accelerometers and a high-end commercial optical motion capture system. Operational modal analysis is conducted to extract modal damping, which has a potential to serve as an indicator of structural health. The dynamic properties of the bridge are evaluated against the results obtained during a proof loading exercise undertaken prior to the bridge opening. It is shown that a vibration monitoring system based on consumer-grade digital camera can indeed provide an economically viable alternative to monitoring the complex time-evolving dynamic behaviour patterns of large-scale bridges.

Vision-Based Structural Monitoring: Application to a Medium-Span Post-Tensioned Concrete Bridge under Vehicular Traffic

“…It is shown here the effect of the application of a low-pass filter (LPF) with cutoff frequency 15 Hz to the measurements of the video cameras. The displacements from camera A in Figures 17-20 are significantly improved by the application of LPF as compared to the unfiltered signals in Figures 12,14,and 16. Similar considerations can be repeated for the other camera, although in this case the noise has a lesser impact.…”

“…The experimental measure of displacements through video processing for the purpose of structural monitoring in civil engineering infrastructures has attracted much attention in the past decade. Hundreds of research articles, mostly focusing on the dynamic response monitoring of bridges, were reviewed in recent comprehensive analyses of the state-of-theart [1][2][3][4][5] and more articles continue to appear, e.g., [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]. The reasons for such interest can be explained by considering the appealing characteristics of such technology, namely:…”

Rebuilding Bailey Bridge to Bridge With Bascule Span – A Case Study

“…It should be noted that other equipment types are used also in measurements, e.g. : portable camera-based vibration monitoring systems (Bocian et al, 2023), terrestrial laser scanning technology (Gawronek & Makuch, 2019) or ground-based radar interferometry (Owerko et al, 2012). Strains/stresses in the steel structure were measured and recorded using the calibrated induction extensometers and specialized measuring equipment (Jasiński et al, 2023).…”

Applications of Computer Vision-Based Structural Monitoring on Long-Span Bridges in Turkey

“…Wahbeh et al (2003) [34] measured the displacements of the Vincent Thomas Bridge in California, which has a main span of 457 m, by using image-processing methods and two red lights. By employing a consumer-grade digital camera and area-based template matching and Lucas-Kanade sparse optical flow algorithms, Bocian et al [35] measured the dynamic responses and extracted the modal damping and frequencies of a cable-stayed bridge that had a central cable-stayed section of 612 m. For long-span bridge applications, the measurement distances, i.e., the distance between the camera and the targeted locations on bridges, are generally much larger than laboratory experiments or close-range applications on real-life structures. The measurement distances of the above-mentioned examples are over hundreds of meters.…”