Wireless Acoustic Emission Sensor Network for Structural Monitoring

• Published in: IEEE sensors journal Vol. 9; no. 11; pp. 1370 - 1377
• Main Authors: Ledeczi, A., Hay, T., Volgyesi, P., Hay, D.R., Nadas, A., Jayaraman, S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York IEEE 01-11-2009; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Acoustic emission; Acoustic sensors; Acoustic signal detection; Aging; Bridges; Bridges (structures); Capacitive sensors; Channels; Diagnostic systems; Fatigue; Monitoring; power management; Prototypes; Sensors; Strain; structural monitoring; Trains; wireless sensor network; Wireless sensor networks
• ISSN: 1530-437X; 1558-1748
• DOI: 10.1109/JSEN.2009.2019315

The paper presents a prototype wireless system for the detection of active fatigue cracks in aging railways bridges in real-time. The system is based on a small low-cost sensor node, called an AEPod, that has four acoustic emission (AE) channels and a strain channel for sensing, as well as the capability to communicate in a wireless fashion with other nodes and a base station. AEPods are placed at fracture-critical bridge locations. The strain sensor detects oncoming traffic and triggers the AEPod out of its hibernation mode. As the train stresses the fracture-critical member, acoustic emission and strain data are acquired. The data are compressed and filtered at the AEPod and transmitted off the bridge using cell-phone communication.