Real-time Structural Dynamic Test Using Parallelized Control Algorithms and Optimized Hybrid System

Abstract

Real-time hybrid dynamic test is an economical and efficient method capable of the replacement of the shaking table test. The purpose of this paper is to optimize the control algorithms and the system configuration for the prediction of the structural dynamic behavior with the interaction between a physical substructure and a numerical modeling in the hybrid testing system. FEAPH, nonlinear finite element analysis program for hybrid, was developed with a fixed number of substep iteration method and parallel computational technique in the control algorithms. These algorithms can improve the inefficiency of iterative methods caused by sequential process, so that the computational time can be reduced. Furthermore, the previously used data communication method and the interface between a substructure and an analysis program were simplified in the control system. In order to verify the accuracy of the hybrid system, the dynamic test with steel framed structure was conducted. As the results, the processing time in hybrid test with FEAPH was improved up to 10% rather than with OpenSees. Moreover the testing performance is almost the same trend within a 5% error level.