Large-Area Resistive Strain Sensing Sheet for Structural Health Monitoring
<p>A resistive strain sensing gauge under axial strain. (<b>a</b>) The sensor layout where piezoresistive trace directions and the direction of strain are depicted, with blue predominately parallel to the strain and red perpendicular to it. (<b>b</b>) The corresponding circuit diagram of the sensor, a full Wheatstone bridge structure. In parenthesis, mechanical strain on each resistor is shown.</p> "> Figure 2
<p>(<b>a</b>) Photographs of the thin-film strain sensing sheet. (<b>b</b>) The material stack-up of the sheet.</p> "> Figure 3
<p>The circuit diagram of the large-area strain sensing system where biasing, strain sensing sheet, readout, and control subsystems are highlighted.</p> "> Figure 4
<p>Measurement setup. (<b>a</b>) Strain sensing sheet glued to the aluminum beam. A ZIF connector was used to connect the sheet to a rigid PCB for readout. (<b>b</b>) The biasing and readout PCB with an amplifier and multiplexers are shown. A ribbon cable was used to bias and receive signals from the strain sensing sheet. (<b>c</b>) Readout and control boards were kept inside a metal Faraday cage to minimize electrical noise.</p> "> Figure 5
<p>Sensing sheet gauge factor characterization. (<b>a</b>) The experiment setup, an instrumented aluminum cantilever, used to compare our sensing sheet performance with a reference thin-film strain sensor. Platform lift is used to adjust deformation of the beam. Inset shows the placement of the reference sensor and sensing sheet. (<b>b</b>) The strain measured by the sensing sheet and reference sensor. Colored x marks represent the measurements from eight sensors on the sensing sheet. The dashed curve is added to show the ideal y = x line.</p> "> Figure 6
<p>Sensor stability test of the sensing sheet shows less than 3 <math display="inline"><semantics> <mrow> <mi>μ</mi> <mi>ϵ</mi> </mrow> </semantics></math> drift in continuously measured strain over 50 h. One sensor is omitted since it had a ZIF connector problem. Both ends of the beam were clamped.</p> "> Figure 7
<p>The field-test setup on Streicker Bridge. (<b>a</b>) The schematic showing locations of reference fiber-optic sensors and sensing sheets. Photographs of the installed sensing sheets and test setup below P12 location. (<b>b</b>) The cross-section of the bridge showing sensor placement.</p> "> Figure 8
<p>(<b>a</b>) Strain and (<b>b</b>) temperature measurement results taken from the bridge over 5 h (9 am to 5 pm). The slow tensile strain increase is because of the temperature rise from morning to afternoon. Different colors represents 6 sensors on the sensing sheet. The temperature was measured at the top fiber-optic sensor location.</p> "> Figure 9
<p>Placement of a sensing sheet on an existing crack on the foundation of pedestrian bridge. (<b>a</b>) Picture of the bridge. (<b>b</b>) Schematic showing the location of the sensing sheet. (<b>c</b>) Picture showing the location of crack with respect to the bridge support. (<b>d</b>) Picture of the crack, inset shows portion of the crack where crack size is about 0.5 mm. (<b>e</b>) Picture of the laminated sensing sheet over the crack. Only sensors 5–8 are placed on the crack.</p> "> Figure 10
<p>(<b>a</b>) Strain and temperature measurements from an existing crack on the bridge from 9 am to 6 pm show that the crack closes as the temperature rises and reopens as it gets colder. Sensors 1 and 5 are partially peeled off from the surface, therefore they are omitted. (<b>b</b>) Crack paths on sensors 6–8 are highlighted using a white line. Sensors 2–4 are placed on crack-free surface.</p> ">
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Strain Sensing Sheet Technology
2.1. Sensing with Thin-Film Resistive Strain Gauges
2.2. Strain Sensing Sheet Fabrication and Design
3. System Overview
3.1. Biasing Circuit
3.2. Readout Circuit
3.3. Control Circuit and Computation
4. Measurement Results
4.1. Installation and Measurement Methods
4.2. Sensor Characterization
4.3. Field Test Without a Crack
4.4. Field Test on an Existing Crack
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
- ASCE. 2017 Infrastructure Report Card. Available online: https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/ (accessed on 3 January 2020).
- Farrar, C.R.; Worden, K. An introduction to structural health monitoring. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. A Math. Phys. Eng. Sci. 2007, 365, 303–315. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Cao, W.; Liu, W.; Koh, C.G.; Smith, I.F. Exploring potential benefits of bridge condition assessment in highway operations. In Proceedings of the 20th Congress of IABSE, New York, NY, USA, 4–6 September 2019; pp. 2372–2377. [Google Scholar]
- Ni, Y.; Wong, K. Integrating bridge structural health monitoring and condition-based maintenance management. In Proceedings of the 4th International Workshop on Civil Structural Health Monitoring, Berlin, Germany, 6–8 November 2012; pp. 6–8. [Google Scholar]
- Kim, J.; Ahn, Y.; Yeo, H. A comparative study of time-based maintenance and condition-based maintenance for optimal choice of maintenance policy. Struct. Infrastruct. Eng. 2016, 12, 1525–1536. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fu, G.; Devaraj, D. Bridge Management Using Pontis and Improved Concepts. In Bridge Engineering Handbook, 2nd ed.; CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL, USA, 2014; pp. 233–246. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Yao, Y.; Tung, S.T.E.; Glisic, B. Crack detection and characterization techniques—An overview. Struct. Control. Health Monit. 2014, 21, 1387–1413. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Li, Y. Hypersensitivity of strain-based indicators for structural damage identification: A review. Mech. Syst. Signal Process. 2010, 24, 653–664. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Barrias, A.; Casas, J.; Villalba, S. A review of distributed optical fiber sensors for civil engineering applications. Sensors 2016, 16, 748. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Bao, X.; Chen, L. Recent progress in distributed fiber optic sensors. Sensors 2012, 12, 8601–8639. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Grosse, C.; McLaskey, G.; Bachmaier, S.; Glaser, S.D.; Krüger, M. A hybrid wireless sensor network for acoustic emission testing in SHM. In Proceedings of the Sensors and Smart Structures Technologies for Civil, Mechanical, and Aerospace Systems 2008, San Diego, CA, USA, 9–13 March 2008; Volume 6932, p. 693238. [Google Scholar]
- Betz, D.C.; Thursby, G.; Culshaw, B.; Staszewski, W.J. Acousto-ultrasonic sensing using fiber Bragg gratings. Smart Mater. Struct. 2003, 12, 122–128. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Yao, Y.; Glisic, B. Sensing sheets: Optimal arrangement of dense array of sensors for an improved probability of damage detection. Struct. Health Monit. Int. J. 2015, 14, 513–531. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Loh, K.J.; Hou, T.C.; Lynch, J.P.; Kotov, N.A. Carbon Nanotube Sensing Skins for Spatial Strain and Impact Damage Identification. J. Nondestruct. Eval. 2009, 28, 9–25. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Loh, K.J.; Kim, J.; Lynch, J.P.; Kam, N.W.S.; Kotov, N.A. Multifunctional layer-by-layer carbon nanotube–polyelectrolyte thin films for strain and corrosion sensing. Smart Mater. Struct. 2007, 16, 429. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Loh, K.; Lynch, J.; Shim, B.; Kotov, N. Tailoring Piezoresistive Sensitivity of Multilayer Carbon Nanotube Composite Strain Sensors. J. Intell. Mater. Syst. Struct. 2008, 19, 747–764. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hallaji, M.; Seppänen, A.; Pour-Ghaz, M. Electrical impedance tomography-based sensing skin for quantitative imaging of damage in concrete. Smart Mater. Struct. 2014, 23, 085001. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Schulz, M.J.; Sundaresan, M.J. Smart Sensor System for Structural Condition Monitoring of Wind Turbines. Available online: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy06osti/40089.pdf (accessed on 3 January 2020).
- Qiu, L.; Deng, X.; Yuan, S.; Huang, Y.; Ren, Y. Impact monitoring for aircraft smart composite skins based on a lightweight sensor network and characteristic digital sequences. Sensors 2018, 18, 2218. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Liu, P.; Yuan, S.; Qiu, L. Development of a PZT-based wireless digital monitor for composite impact monitoring. Smart Mater. Struct. 2012, 21, 035018. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Song, G.; Li, H.; Gajic, B.; Zhou, W.; Chen, P.; Gu, H. Wind turbine blade health monitoring with piezoceramic-based wireless sensor network. Int. J. Smart Nano Mater. 2013, 4, 150–166. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Laflamme, S.; Saleem, H.S.; Vasan, B.K.; Geiger, R.L.; Chen, D.; Kessler, M.R.; Rajan, K. Soft elastomeric capacitor network for strain sensing over large surfaces. IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatron. 2013, 18, 1647–1654. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Laflamme, S.; Ubertini, F.; Saleem, H.; D’Alessandro, A.; Downey, A.; Ceylan, H.; Materazzi, A.L. Dynamic characterization of a soft elastomeric capacitor for structural health monitoring. J. Struct. Eng. 2014, 141, 04014186. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Kong, X.; Li, J.; Collins, W.; Bennett, C.; Laflamme, S.; Jo, H. A large-area strain sensing technology for monitoring fatigue cracks in steel bridges. Smart Mater. Struct. 2017, 26, 085024. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Downey, A.; Laflamme, S.; Ubertini, F. Experimental wind tunnel study of a smart sensing skin for condition evaluation of a wind turbine blade. Smart Mater. Struct. 2017, 26, 125005. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Downey, A.; Hu, C.; Laflamme, S. Optimal sensor placement within a hybrid dense sensor network using an adaptive genetic algorithm with learning gene pool. Struct. Health Monit. 2018, 17, 450–460. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Yan, J.; Downey, A.; Cancelli, A.; Laflamme, S.; Chen, A.; Li, J.; Ubertini, F. Concrete Crack Detection and Monitoring Using a Capacitive Dense Sensor Array. Sensors 2019, 19, 1843. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Zymelka, D.; Togashi, K.; Ohigashi, R.; Yamashita, T.; Takamatsu, S.; Itoh, T.; Kobayashi, T. Printed strain sensor array for application to structural health monitoring. Smart Mater. Struct. 2017, 26, 105040. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Zymelka, D.; Yamashita, T.; Takamatsu, S.; Itoh, T.; Kobayashi, T. Printed strain sensor with temperature compensation and its evaluation with an example of applications in structural health monitoring. Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 2017, 56, 05EC02. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Zymelka, D.; Yamashita, T.; Takamatsu, S.; Itoh, T.; Kobayashi, T. Printed strain sensors for early damage detection in engineering structures. Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 2018, 57, 05GD05. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Zonta, D.; Chiappini, A.; Chiasera, A.; Ferrari, M.; Pozzi, M.; Battisti, L.; Benedetti, M. Photonic crystals for monitoring fatigue phenomena in steel structures. In Proceedings of the Sensors and Smart Structures Technologies for Civil, Mechanical, and Aerospace Systems 2009, San Diego, CA, USA, 8–12 March 2009; p. 729215. [Google Scholar]
- Withey, P.A.; Vemuru, V.S.M.; Bachilo, S.M.; Nagarajaiah, S.; Weisman, R.B. Strain paint: Noncontact strain measurement using single-walled carbon nanotube composite coatings. Nano Lett. 2012, 12, 3497–3500. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Salowitz, N.P.; Guo, Z.; Kim, S.J.; Li, Y.H.; Lanzara, G.; Chang, F.K. Microfabricated expandable sensor networks for intelligent sensing materials. IEEE Sens. J. 2014, 14, 2138–2144. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Glišić, B.; Yao, Y.; Tung, S.T.E.; Wagner, S.; Sturm, J.C.; Verma, N. Strain sensing sheets for structural health monitoring based on large-area electronics and integrated circuits. Proc. IEEE 2016, 104, 1513–1528. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Fjelstad, J. Flexible Circuit Technology; Br Publishing, Incorporated: Seaside, OR, USA, 2011. [Google Scholar]
- Tung, S.; Yao, Y.; Glisic, B. Sensing sheet: The sensitivity of thin-film full-bridge strain sensors for crack detection and characterization. Meas. Sci. Technol. 2014, 25, 075602. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Glisic, B.; Verma, N. Very dense arrays of sensors for SHM based on large area electronics. In Proceedings of the 8th International Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring 2011: Condition-Based Maintenance and Intelligent Structures, Stanford, CA, USA, 13–15 September 2011; pp. 1409–1416. [Google Scholar]
- Robinson, M. Strain gage materials processing, metallurgy, and manufacture. Exp. Tech. 2006, 30, 42–46. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Gerstenhaber, M.; Lee, S. Strain Gage Measurement Using an AC Excitation; Application Note AN-683; Analog Devices: Norwood, MA, USA, 2004; p. 1. [Google Scholar]
- Gerber, M.; Weaver, C.; Aygun, L.E.; Verma, N.; Sturm, J.C.; Glišić, B. Strain Transfer for Optimal Performance of Sensing Sheet. Sensors 2018, 18, 1907. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Yu, H.; Adams, R.D.; da Silva, L.F.M. Development of a dilatometer and measurement of the shrinkage behaviour of adhesives during cure. Int. J. Adhes. Adhes. 2013, 47, 26–34. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hu, C.; Gao, Y.; Sheng, Z. The piezoresistance coefficients of copper and copper-nickel alloys. J. Mater. Sci. 2000, 35, 381–386. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Reilly, J.; Glisic, B. Identifying time periods of minimal thermal gradient for temperature-driven structural health monitoring. Sensors 2018, 18, 734. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Aygun, L.E.; Kumar, V.; Weaver, C.; Gerber, M.; Wagner, S.; Verma, N.; Glisic, B.; Sturm, J.C. Large-Area Resistive Strain Sensing Sheet for Structural Health Monitoring. Sensors 2020, 20, 1386. https://doi.org/10.3390/s20051386
Aygun LE, Kumar V, Weaver C, Gerber M, Wagner S, Verma N, Glisic B, Sturm JC. Large-Area Resistive Strain Sensing Sheet for Structural Health Monitoring. Sensors. 2020; 20(5):1386. https://doi.org/10.3390/s20051386
Chicago/Turabian StyleAygun, Levent E., Vivek Kumar, Campbell Weaver, Matthew Gerber, Sigurd Wagner, Naveen Verma, Branko Glisic, and James C. Sturm. 2020. "Large-Area Resistive Strain Sensing Sheet for Structural Health Monitoring" Sensors 20, no. 5: 1386. https://doi.org/10.3390/s20051386