• Proceedings of the Korea Concrete Institute Conference
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.803-808
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• 2001

Mathematical basis of interpretation of data from nondestructive evaluation (NDE) methods in bridge inspection is presented. In bridge inspection with NDE methods, NDE data are not assessments. NDE data must be interpreted as condition of element. Interpretation is then assessment. Correct assessments of conditions of bridge elements depend on the accuracy and variability in test data as well as on the uncertainty of correlations between attributes (what is measured) and conditions (what is sought in the inspection). Inaccuracy and variability in test data defines the qualify or NDE test. The qualify or test itself is important, but in view of condition assessment, the significance of uncertainty in correlations of attributes and conditions must be combined. NDE methods that are accurate in their measurements may still be found to be poor methods if attributes are uncertain indicators of condition of bridge elements. This paper reports mathematical presentation of inaccuracy and variability in test data and of uncertainty in correlation of attributes to element conditions with three examples of NDE methods.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.13 no.5 s.57
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• pp.101-108
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• 2009

Mathematical basis of interpretation of data from nondestructive evaluation (NDE) methods in condition assessment of structures is presented. In structural inspection with NDE methods, NDE data are not directly used for the condition assessment. Instead, NDE data must be interpreted as condition of inspected element. Correct assessments of conditions depend on many factors such as the inaccuracy and the variability in NDE measurements and the uncertainty in correlation between attributes (what is measured) and conditions (what is sought in the inspection). A full description of the performance of NDE methods considers the relation of test data to conditions of elements. The quality of the test itself is important, but equally important is the interpretation that occurs after the test. The effects of variability in test data and uncertainty in correlations of attributes and conditions are presented in three examples of field testing methods.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.167-175
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• 2007

The relations between data from test methods and conditions in structural elements are considered. NDE(Nondestructive Evaluation) methods are joint application of a test and a basis for interpretation of data obtained in the test. Correct assessments of conditions of elements depend on the inaccuracy and variability in the test data and on the uncertainty of correlations between attributes(what is measured) and conditions(what is sought in the inspection). A full description of the performance of NDE methods considers the relation of test data to condition of elements. The quality of the test data itself is important, but equally important is the interpretation that occurs after the test. To make the decision of the performance of NDE methods, this paper presents mathematical basis to measure the reliability of NDE methods.

• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.19-34
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• 2015

One of the main causes of a limited use of nondestructive evaluation (NDE) technologies in bridge deck assessment is the speed of data collection and analysis. The paper describes development and implementation of the RABIT (Robotics Assisted Bridge Inspection Tool) for data collection using multiple NDE technologies. The system is designed to characterize three most common deterioration types in concrete bridge decks: rebar corrosion, delamination, and concrete degradation. It implements four NDE technologies: electrical resistivity (ER), impact echo (IE), ground-penetrating radar (GPR), and ultrasonic surface waves (USW) method. The technologies are used in a complementary way to enhance the interpretation. In addition, the system utilizes advanced vision to complement traditional visual inspection. Finally, the RABIT collects data at a significantly higher speed than it is done using traditional NDE equipment. The robotic system is complemented by an advanced data interpretation. The associated platform for the enhanced interpretation of condition assessment in concrete bridge decks utilizes data integration, fusion, and deterioration and defect visualization. This paper concentrates on the validation and field implementation of two NDE technologies. The first one is IE used in the delamination detection and characterization, while the second one is the USW method used in the assessment of concrete quality. The validation of performance of the two methods was conducted on a 9 m long and 3.6 m wide fabricated bridge structure with numerous artificial defects embedded in the deck.

• Proceedings of the Korea Concrete Institute Conference
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• 2000.10b
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• pp.1291-1296
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• 2000

A basis for the direct use of data from nondestructive evaluation methods in bridge management systems is presented. Bridge management systems use integer-valued condition ratings to recognize conditions of bridge elements, to model progression of deterioration, and to determine repair needs. Data from nondestructive evaluation methods can inform management systems on the extent of damage, on the initiation of deterioration processes, and on the exposure of bridge elements to aggressive agents. In addition, data obtained through nondestructive evaluation methods allow the formation of models of specific deterioration process. The use of these data in bridge management systems requires redefinition of condition ratings together with the creation of procedures for automated interpretation of data. By these action, nondestructive evaluation methods are directly used to assign condition ratings, and condition ratings are made into terse form of NDE data that are compatible with present day bridge management systems. This paper reports work in progress to strategic use of nondestructive evaluation methods in bridge management system.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.328-333
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• 2006

Magnetic Flux Leakage (MFL) methods are widely employed for the nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of gas pipelines. In the application of MFL pipeline inspection technology, corrosion anomalies are detected and identified via their leakage filed due to changes in wall thickness. The gas industry is keenly interested in automating the interpretation process, because a large amount of data to be analyzed is generated for in-line inspection. This paper presents a novel approach to the tasks of data segmentation, feature extraction and depth estimation from gas pipelines. Also, we will show that the proposed method successfully identifying artificial defects.

• Journal of the Institute of Convergence Signal Processing
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.15-26
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• 2003

Ultrasonic inspection methods are widely used for detecting flaws in materials. The signal analysis step plays a crucial part in the data interpretation process. A number of signal processing methods have been proposed to classify ultrasonic flaw signals. One of the more popular methods involves the extraction of an appropriate set of features followed by the use of a neural network for the classification of the signals in the feature space. This paper describes an alternative approach which uses the least mean square (LMS) method and expectation maximization (EM) algorithm with the model based deconvolution which is employed for classifying nondestructive evaluation (NDE) signals from steam generator tubes in a nuclear power plant. The signals due to cracks and deposits are not significantly different. These signals must be discriminated to prevent from happening a huge disaster such as contamination of water or explosion. A model based deconvolution has been described to facilitate comparison of classification results. The method uses the space alternating generalized expectation maximization (SAGE) algorithm In conjunction with the Newton-Raphson method which uses the Hessian parameter resulting in fast convergence to estimate the time of flight and the distance between the tube wall and the ultrasonic sensor Results using these schemes for the classification of ultrasonic signals from cracks and deposits within steam generator tubes are presented and showed a reasonable performances.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.27-35
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• 2005

Ultrasonic inspection methods are widely used for detecting flaws in materials. The signal analysis step plays a crucial part in the data interpretation process. A number of signal processing methods have been proposed to classify ultrasonic flaw signals. One of the more popular methods involves the extraction of an appropriate set of features followed by the use of a neural network for the classification of the signals in the feature spare. This paper describes an alternative approach which uses the least mean square (LMS) method and exportation maximization (EM) algorithm with the model based deconvolution which is employed for classifying nondestructive evaluation (NDE) signals from steam generator tubes in a nuclear power plant. The signals due to cracks and deposits are not significantly different. These signals must be discriminated to prevent from happening a huge disaster such as contamination of water or explosion. A model based deconvolution has been described to facilitate comparison of classification results. The method uses the space alternating generalized expectation maximiBation (SAGE) algorithm ill conjunction with the Newton-Raphson method which uses the Hessian parameter resulting in fast convergence to estimate the time of flight and the distance between the tube wall and the ultrasonic sensor. Results using these schemes for the classification of ultrasonic signals from cracks and deposits within steam generator tubes are presented and showed a reasonable performances.