Innovation in Instrumentation, Monitoring, and Condition Assessment of Infrastructure

Abstract

Future-proofing our existing and new infrastructure has become a constant theme in government and industry discussions. To achieve this, we need to understand the performance of our infrastructure better than before both during its construction and throughout its design life. Using recent advances in sensor systems and new technologies from the Internet of Things (IoT), it is hypothesized in this chapter that the rich information obtained from embedded sensors within infrastructure will allow us to develop a new paradigm in designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining our infrastructure systems. The chapter discusses the potential value of sensing not only to understand the behavior of monitored structures but also to make better decisions for management of infrastructure at the asset and city scales with a whole lifecycle-based thinking. New generations of sensor systems that satisfy these new requirements are introduced. IntroductionFuture-proofing our existing and new infrastructure has become a constant theme in government and industry discussions. We face with the fact that our old infrastructure continues to age and require monitoring and remedial interventions. Existing infrastructure is challenged by the need to increase load and usage and the requirement to maintain the existing infrastructure while operating at current capacity. The high cost involved in upgrading will lead to a desire to extend their life. For this reason, a need for better quality asset data to improve decision-making and reduce cost has been highlighted (e.g., HM Treasury 2014).Active monitoring of the construction and operational processes of infrastructure is essential. That is, structures are instrumented to assess their performance against engineering design parameters or predictive models. The current monitoring systems do not fit well with this demand, especially for the long-term behavior.

South African infrastructure condition - an opinion survey for the SAICE Infrastructure Report Card

“…In new infrastructure, the latest technologies in sensors and the Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to ensure rich data collection that can assist in the design and operation of infrastructure, infrastructure condition assessment and the planning of maintenance (Soga 2016;Aktan et al 1998;Nagarajaiah & Erazo 2016). A number of cities around the world, for example, use Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) that has led to cost savings in the management of the road vehicle fleet and the maintenance of road infrastructure.…”

Enhancing the Building Information Modeling Lifecycle of Complex Structures with IoT: Phases, Capabilities and Use Cases

“…As mentioned in section 4.2., self-organized and intelligent maintenance (cf. Table 1, cyan) is one of the categories companies should focus on when adopting IoT [32]. The automated monitoring of buildings is a relevant use case in this area.…”