Exploiting Performance of Different Low-Cost Sensors for Small Amplitude Oscillatory Motion Monitoring: Preliminary Comparisons in View of Possible Integration

Abstract

We address the problem of low amplitude oscillatory motion detection through different low-cost sensors: a LIS3LV02DQ MEMS accelerometer, a Microsoft Kinect v2 range camera, and a uBlox 6 GPS receiver. Several tests were performed using a one-direction vibrating table with different oscillation frequencies (in the range 1.5-3 Hz) and small challenging amplitudes (0.02 m and 0.03 m). A Mikrotron EoSens high-resolution camera was used to give reference data. A dedicated software tool was developed to retrieve Kinect v2 results. The capabilities of the VADASE algorithm were employed to process uBlox 6 GPS receiver observations. In the investigated time interval (in the order of tens of seconds) the results obtained indicate that displacements were detected with the resolution of fractions of millimeters with MEMS accelerometer and Kinect v2 and few millimeters with uBlox 6. MEMS accelerometer displays the lowest noise but a significant bias, whereas Kinect v2 and uBlox 6 appear more stable. The results suggest the possibility of sensor integration both for indoor (MEMS accelerometer + Kinect v2) and for outdoor (MEMS accelerometer + uBlox 6) applications and seem promising for structural monitoring applications.

A Review of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-based Dynamic Monitoring Technologies for Structural Health Monitoring

“…In addition, VADASE can also be applied to structural monitoring [74][75][76]. In Benedetti et al [76], to exploit the performance of the low-cost GPS receiver uBlox 6 for small amplitude oscillatory motion monitoring, a one-direction vibrating table was used to assess the performance. The data was collected with vibration frequencies of 1.7 Hz, 2.0 Hz, 2.2 Hz, 2.7 Hz and amplitudes of 2 cm and 3 cm, respectively.…”

“…The data was collected with vibration frequencies of 1.7 Hz, 2.0 Hz, 2.2 Hz, 2.7 Hz and amplitudes of 2 cm and 3 cm, respectively. Due to the 5 Hz limit of the uBlox 6 sampling frequency, even in the lowest frequency test, there is an aliasing effect, resulting in an underestimation of about 30% of the oscillation amplitude and overall accuracy of about 30% of the reference solution [76]. In Ashcroft et al [74], the VADASE-based automatic monitoring solution has been integrated into the GNSS receiver board for real-time dynamic monitoring of velocity and displacement without any time delay.…”

Feasibility Analysis of the Performance of Low-Cost Gnss Receivers in Monitoring Dynamic Motion

“…A few studies have focused on the investigation of the performance of low-cost GPS/GNSS receivers monitoring dynamic motion. More specifically, Jo et al [16] assessed the accuracy of chipset low-cost GPS receiver in slow dynamic motion based on circular motion experiments; Benedetti et al [33] assessed low-cost u-blox GPS receiver as part of a low-cost monitoring system in monitoring one-degree dynamic motion of a shaking table; Lȃpȃdat et al [34] assessed the accuracy of low-cost dual-frequency GNSS receiver (u-blox ZED-F9P) monitoring dynamic motion using though only GPS measurements; Manzini et al [35] evaluated the performance of low-cost GNSS receiver with 1-Hz sampling rate, in dynamic motion experiments of oscillation frequency up to 0.25 Hz. Furthermore, in very limited studies, low-cost GNSS receivers have been applied in bridge monitoring.…”

Multi-Temporal X-Band Radar Interferometry Using Corner Reflectors: Application and Validation at the Corvara Landslide (Dolomites, Italy)

“…Moreover, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have gained popularity amongst landslide researchers, combined with photogrammetric applications [12][13][14], whilst Global Position System (GPS) surveying, even if intrinsically a point-wise technique requiring a careful selection of the points to be monitored, represents a benchmark technique in slope monitoring [15][16][17]. This also holds true considering the potential of the endless upcoming of low-cost GNSS receivers, which will probably make GNSS monitoring even more popular in the next future, due to the high-quality performances of new devices [18][19][20][21].…”