Quantitative Structural Health Monitoring for Damage Detection
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Bristol
Department Name: Mechanical Engineering
Abstract
The objective of structural health monitoring (SHM) is to embed one or more measurement systems into a structure, such as an aeroplane or bridge, that can provide information on the current condition of the structure while it is in service. In this proposal the emphasis is on systems to detect localised damage to a structure, whether due to degradation (e.g. fatigue, corrosion) or unexpected external events (e.g. impacts). The alternative to SHM is to detect such damage using non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques that usually require a sensor to be scanned over the structure. The attraction for SHM over NDE is the reduction in inspection cost and the structural 'down-time' associated with inspection. However, for an SHM system to supersede an NDE procedure it is necessary for the SHM system to be able to demonstrate quantifiably equal or superior performance in terms of sensitivity to damage at all locations of interest. A key reason why SHM systems for damage detection have not progressed from research laboratories into industry is because the issue of quantifiable performance has not been satisfactorily addressed. The need to have quantifiable performance underpins all the work proposed in this Fellowship application. Two sub-projects are defined that will lead to an integrated SHM system that uses guided acoustic waves in both active and passive modalities for damage detection. A third sub-project addresses the key issue of providing a generalised performance calibration strategy that is applicable to both active and passive detection. The overall goal of the Fellowship is to provide the scientific way forward that will enable SHM systems for damage detection to make the transition from laboratory to industry.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Paul Wilcox (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Velichko A
(2010)
A generalized approach for efficient finite element modeling of elastodynamic scattering in two and three dimensions
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Konstantinidis G
(2007)
An Investigation Into the Temperature Stability of a Guided Wave Structural Health Monitoring System Using Permanently Attached Sensors
in IEEE Sensors Journal
Michaels JE
(2013)
Chirp excitation of ultrasonic guided waves.
in Ultrasonics
Croxford AJ
(2010)
Efficient temperature compensation strategies for guided wave structural health monitoring.
in Ultrasonics
Flynn E
(2011)
Enhanced detection through low-order stochastic modeling for guided-wave structural health monitoring
in Structural Health Monitoring
Clarke T
(2009)
Evaluation of the damage detection capability of a sparse-array guided-wave SHM system applied to a complex structure under varying thermal conditions.
in IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control
J Michaels
(2008)
Imaging algorithms for locating damage via in situ ultrasonic sensors
Flynn E
(2011)
Maximum-likelihood estimation of damage location in guided-wave structural health monitoring
in Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
Zhong C
(2015)
Remote inspection system for impact damage in large composite structure
in Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
Wilcox PD
(2010)
Scattering of plane guided waves obliquely incident on a straight feature with uniform cross-section.
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Description | Fellowship enabled the PI to establish himself as an internationally-leading expert in guided-wave-based structural health monitoring. Key scientific papers address the fundamental issues of transduction, the mitigation of environmental effects, signal processing, calibration, damage detection and localisation. The work has underpinned multiple follow-on projects and led in part to the formation of the spin-out company, Inductosense, that manufactures wireless ultrasonic sensors for structural health monitoring. |
Exploitation Route | Frameworks for objectively characterising SHM system performance (e.g. damage detection capability) have been proposed and are used by others. The methods for mitigating environmental effects have been published and are widely cited, from which we infer that they are being used by others. |
Sectors | Aerospace Defence and Marine Chemicals Construction Energy Environment Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology |
Description | Findings from this work partly underpin our spin-out company, Inductosense (www.inductosense.com), who make wireless ultrasonic sensors that can be embedded within structures. When used as guided wave sensors for large-area coverage, our findings on mitigating environmental effects through robust baseline subtraction algorithms are exploited. To facilitate low-voltage, intrinsically-safe, rapid operation Inductosense instruments use special chirp signals of the type outlined in a paper resulting from this project. Inductosense has 8 employees and is currently recruiting for several more. |
First Year Of Impact | 2015 |
Sector | Aerospace, Defence and Marine,Chemicals,Construction,Energy,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Transport |
Impact Types | Economic |
Company Name | Inductosense |
Description | Inductosense has developed wireless sensing technology that can be embedded into materials and products to enable low-cost inspections of structures. |
Year Established | 2015 |
Impact | Won ~£500,000 iCure grant to develop business. |
Website | http://www.inductosense.com |
Description | Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The wireless, inductively-coupled, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) sensors now being commercialised by our spin-out company, Inductosense Ltd., formed one of 3 exhibits on the stand "the hidden world of ultrasound" at the 2014 Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://sse.royalsociety.org/2014/ultrasonic-waves/ |