Monitoring Field Lift Thickness Using Compaction Equipment Instrumented with Global Positioning System (GPS) Technology

Abstract

When constructing earthen embankments, it is essential that the soil be placed and spread in uniform lifts prior to compaction. To ensure that the resulting soil lifts are evenly compacted, typical compaction specification approaches place restrictions on the thickness that is acceptable for each soil lift. In current practice, it can be extremely difficult for a field inspector to verify that lift thickness requirements are being met when soil is being placed and spread over a large area, without the use of frequent surveying (which adds both costs and delays to earthwork projects). Recent advances in compaction control include the development of continuous compaction control (CCC) and intelligent compaction (IC) systems, which provide real-time monitoring and feedback about the operation and performance of soil compaction. Typically, CCC and IC compaction equipment is outfitted with a real-time kinematic global positioning system (RTK-GPS) that monitors and records the position of the compacter as the soil lift is being compacted. This paper suggests that geotechnical engineers use field RTK-GPS measurements that are made by CCC or IC equipment to monitor and control the thickness of compacted soil lifts. Data collected from a full-scale field study is used to illustrate the practical issues with using GPS measurements for field monitoring of lift thickness during construction of a roadway embankment, such as varying roller position from lift-to-lift and the measurement uncertainty associated with RTK-GPS measurement data. The use of both simple and sophisticated spatial analysis techniques are explored for interpolating measured field elevation data onto a uniform grid for lift thickness assessment. The resulting methodology that is presented can be utilized to build spatial maps of compacted soil lift thickness, a process that can be used to great benefit by field engineers who are trying to ensure the quality of compacted soil lifts.

A Review on Roller Compaction Quality Control and Assurance Methods for Earthwork in Five Application Scenarios

“…Liu et al [ 102 ] created a cyber-physical system for collaborative control of multiple rollers (MRCM). In addition, several researchers have carried out compaction parameter monitoring studies on embankments [ 107 ], high filled channels [ 108 ], and earthworks [ 100 ], and developed compaction equipment instrumented with global positioning system technology (GEGPS), monitoring and control system of roller compaction quality (CQMCS), and Comprehensive instrumentation system (CIS), respectively.…”

“…Compaction quality monitoring systems (CQMSs) provide a new solution to the problems associated with conventional control methods [ 10 , 16 , 24 ], and a typical compaction quality monitoring system is shown in Figure 8 [ 24 ]. Studies on the CQMSs [ 18 , 103 ] have primarily focused on monitoring the compaction parameters [ 38 , 107 , 198 ] and the continuous detection of compaction quality [ 1 , 10 , 16 , 183 ]. With the development of technology and research, several typical CQMSs have matured, such as CCC/RICM/IC systems [ 3 , 15 , 21 , 22 , 29 , 30 ], compaction information management (CIM) systems [ 2 , 16 , 199 ], intelligent analysis (IA) systems [ 114 , 135 , 136 , 137 ], and post-processing systems [ 24 , 33 , 200 , 201 ].…”

Automated control systems for civil construction machinery using RTK-GNSS: an implementation review

“…In these activities, this system can also be used to obtain information about the progress. Meehan et al (2013) used interpolation methods (Kriging and Inverse Distance Weighting Methods) to create three-dimensional planes of compacted layers using coordinates obtained by GNSS RTK. Given that GNSS data is about point positions, the interpolation was shown to be an excellent alternative for compaction control of large areas through the creation of plans which represent the 3D compacted layers.…”

Process Evaluation for Smart Concrete Road Construction:Road Surface and Thickness Evaluation Using High-Speed LiDAR Technology

“…Some studies on this topic have been conducted in the compaction of earthen structures. For example, Meehan et al [17] evaluated the lift thickness for earthen embarkments. They employed a RTK-GPS attached to the compactors to measure the placed soil and its compaction.…”