<title>Global monitoring concept for bridges</title>

Abstract

Knowledge of the integrity of rn-service structures on a continuous time basis is an ultimate objective for owners and maintenance authorities. The development of a life extension and/or replacement strategy for highway structures is a crucial point in an effective bridge management system. A key component of such a bridge management system is a means of surveillance techniques and determining the condition of an existing structure within the normative and budgetary constraints. Recent advances in sensing technologies and material/structure damage characterization combined with current developments in computations and communications have resulted in a significant interest in developing diagnostic technologies for monitoring the integrity of and for the detection of damages of structures. To identify anomalies and deterioration processes, it is essential to understand the relationships between the signal measurements and the real occurred phenomena. Therefore, the comparison of measured and calculated data in order to tune and validate the mechanical and numerical model assumptions is an integral part of any system analysis. Finally, the interpreted results of all measurements should be the basis for the condition assessment and the safety evaluation of a structure to facilitate replacement and repair decisions.

Methodologies for model-free data interpretation of civil engineering structures

“…Another application in which a statistical evaluation of structural behaviour based on MPCA is performed is the Colle Isarco viaduct on the Italian Brenner-Highway A22. A detailed description on this bridge and the monitoring system is provided by Bergmeister and Santa [51]. The bridge is shown in Figure 31.…”