• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.927-942
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• 2014

Structural displacement is an important indicator for assessing structural safety. For structural displacement monitoring, vision-based displacement measurement systems have been widely developed; however, most systems estimate only 1 or 2-DOF translational displacement. To monitor the 6-DOF structural displacement with high accuracy, a vision-based displacement measurement system with a uniquely designed marker is proposed in this paper. The system is composed of a uniquely designed marker and a camera with a zooming capability, and relative translational and rotational displacement between the marker and the camera is estimated by finding a homography transformation. The novel marker is designed to make the system robust to measurement noise based on a sensitivity analysis of the conventional marker and it has been verified through Monte Carlo simulation results. The performance of the displacement estimation has been verified through two kinds of experimental tests; using a shaking table and a motorized stage. The results show that the system estimates the structural 6-DOF displacement, especially the translational displacement in Z-axis, with high accuracy in real time and is robust to measurement noise.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.16 no.4 s.109
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• pp.394-403
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• 2006

A new equivalent linearization technique is proposed for a friction damper-brace system (FDBS) idealized as a elastoplastic system. The equivalent linearization technique utilizes secant stiffness and dissipated energy defined by the probability distribution of the extremal displacement of the FDBS. In addition, a conversion scheme is proposed so that an equivalent linear system is designed first and converted to the FDBS. For comparative study, an existing model update technique based on system identification is modified in a form appropriate to update single element. For the purpose of verification, shaking table tests of a small scale three-story shear building model, in which a rotational FDBS is installed, are conducted and equivalent linear systems are obtained using the proposed technique and the model update technique. Complex eigenvalue analysis is conducted for those equivalent linear systems, and the natural frequencies and modal damping ratios are compared with those obtained from system identification. Additionally, RMS and peak responses obtained from time history analysis of the equivalent linear systems are compared with measured ones.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.40-46
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• 2006

This paper presents a novel fiber optic accelerometer system for monitoring vibration of large-size structures. The system is composed of one (or multiple) sensor head, a light control unit and a signal processing unit. The sensing mechanism of the sensor head is based on a novel integration of the moire fringe phenomenon with fiber optics to achieve a robust performance in addition to its immunity to EM interference, easy cabling, and low cost. In this paper, a prototype of the fiber optic accelerometer system has been developed successfully. A low-cost light control unit has been developed to drive the system's optic and electronic components. A unique algorithm has also been developed to derive the sensor's acceleration from the raw signals of the light control unit; it is implemented via a separate signal processing unit. Finally, the shaking table tests successfully demonstrate the performance and the potential of the moire fringe fiber optic sensor system to monitor the health of civil infrastructures.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.513-534
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• 2003

Using fluid dampers to connect adjacent buildings for enhancing their seismic resistant performance has been recently investigated but limited to linear elastic adjacent buildings only. This paper presents a study of inelastic seismic response of adjacent buildings linked by fluid dampers. A nonlinear finite element planar model using plastic beam element is first constructed to simulate two steel frames connected by fluid dampers. Computed linear elastic seismic responses of the two steel frames with and without fluid dampers under moderate seismic events are then compared with the experimental results obtained from shaking table tests. Finally, elastic-plastic seismic responses of the two steel frames with and without fluid dampers are extensively computed, and the fluid damper performance on controlling inelastic seismic response of the two steel frames is assessed. The effects of the fundamental frequency ratio and structural damping ratio of the two steel frames on the damper performance are also examined. The results show that not only in linear elastic stage but also in inelastic stage, the seismic resistant performance of the two steel frames of different fundamental frequencies can be significantly enhanced if they are properly linked by fluid dampers of appropriate parameters.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.81-89
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• 2005

Relationship between dynamic friction resistances and shear displacement rate, and other frictional characteristics of non-geotextile-involving geosynthetic interfaces was experimentally studied. A cyclic, displacement rate-controlled experimental setup built on a shaking table was used. The subsequent multiple rate tests showed that interfaces that do not involve geotextiles have distinct shearing characteristics that can be differentiated from the interfaces involving geotextiles. Unlike those of the geotextile-involving interfaces, shear behaviors of the interfaces involving only non-geotextiles tend to be not sensitive to shear displacement rate, and are approximately rigid-perfectly plastic.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.211-229
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• 2004

The main purpose of this paper is the numerical analysis of the non-linear seismic response of a RC building mock-up. The mock-up is subjected to different synthetic horizontal seismic excitations. The numerical approach is based on a 3D-model involving multilayered shell elements. These elements are composed of several single-layer membranes with various eccentricities. Bending effects are included through these eccentricities. Basic equations are first written for a single membrane element with its own eccentricity and then generalised to the multilayered shell element by superposition. The multilayered shell is considered as a classical shell element : all information about non-linear constitutive relations are investigated at the local scale of each layer, whereas balance and kinematics are checked afterwards at global scale. The non-linear dynamic response of the building is computed with Newmark algorithm. The numerical dynamic results (blind simulations) are considered in the linear and non linear cases and compared with experimental results from shaking table tests. Multilayered shell elements are found to be a promising tool for predictive computations of RC structures behaviour under 3D seismic loadings. This study was part of the CAMUS International Benchmark.

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.49-59
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• 2018

Wireless sensors are more favorable in measuring structural response compared to conventional sensors. This is because they are easier to use with no issues with cables and are considerably cheaper. There are several applications that can be used in recording and analyzing data from MEMS sensor installed on an iPhone. The Vibration App is one of the applications used and there has not been adequate research conducted in analyzing the performance of this App. This paper analyzed the performance of the Vibration App by comparing it with the performance of an ICP sensor. Results show that natural frequency results are more accurate (error less than 5%) in comparison to the amplitude results. This means that built- in MEMS sensor in smartphones are good at estimating natural frequency of structures. In addition, it was seen that the results became more accurate at higher frequencies (5.0Hz and 10.0Hz).

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.209-221
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• 2019

The classical Kalman filter (KF) provides a practical and efficient way for state estimation. It is, however, not applicable when the external excitations applied to the structures are unknown. Moreover, it is known the classical KF is only suitable for linear systems and can't handle the nonlinear cases. The aim of this paper is to extend the classical KF approach to circumvent the aforementioned limitations for the joint estimation of structural states and the unknown inputs. On the basis of the scheme of the classical KF, analytical recursive solution of an improved KF approach is derived and presented. A revised form of observation equation is obtained basing on a projection matrix. The structural states and the unknown inputs are then simultaneously estimated with limited measurements in linear or nonlinear systems. The efficiency and accuracy of the proposed approach is verified via a five-story shear building, a simply supported beam, and three sorts of nonlinear hysteretic structures. The shaking table tests of a five-story building structure are also employed for the validation of the robustness of the proposed approach. Numerical and experimental results show that the proposed approach can not only satisfactorily estimate structural states, but also identify unknown loadings with acceptable accuracy for both linear and nonlinear systems.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.641-654
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• 2019

This paper investigates the seismic response of a typical non-navigable continuous girder bridge isolated with friction sliding bearings of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao link projects in China. The effectiveness of the friction pendulum system (FPS) and accuracy of the numerical model were evaluated by a 1/20 scaled bridge model using shaking table tests. Based on the hysteretic properties of friction pendulum system (FPS), double concave friction pendulum (DCFP), and triple friction pendulum system (TFPS), seismic response analyses of isolated bridges with the three sliding-type bearings are systematically carried out considering soil-pile interaction under offshore soft clay conditions. The fast nonlinear analysis (FNA) method and response spectrum are employed to investigate the seismic response of isolated offshore bridge structures. The numerical results show that the implementation of the three sliding-type bearings effectively reduce the base shear and bending moment of the reinforced concrete pier, at the cost of increasing the absolute displacement of the bridge superstructure. Furthermore, the TFPS and DCFP bearings show better isolation effect than FPS bearing for the example continuous girder bridge.

• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.1-19
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• 2021

Composite nature of the masonry structures in general causes complex and non-linear behaviour, especially in intense vibration conditions. The presence of different types and forms of structural elements and different materials is a major problem for the analysis of these type of structures. For this reason, the analysis of the behaviour of masonry structures requires a combination of experimental tests and non-linear mathematical modelling. The famous UNESCO Heritage Old Bridge in Mostar was selected as an example for the analysis of the global behaviour of reinforced stone arch masonry bridges. As part of the experimental research, a model of the Old Bridge was constructed in a scale of 1:9 and tested on a shaking table platform for different levels of seismic excitation. Non-linear mathematical modelling was performed using a combined finite-discrete element method (FDEM), including the effect of connection elements. The paper presents the horizontal displacement of the top of the arch and the failure mechanism of the Old Bridge model for the experimental and the numerical phase, as well as the comparison of the results. This research provided a clearer insight into the global behaviour of stone arch masonry structures reinforced with steel clamps and steel dowels, which is significant for the structures classified as world cultural heritage.