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Factors affecting wireless network communication in monitoring systems for steel bridges

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Abstract

The Federal Highway Administration requires that highway bridges in the US be inspected at least every 2 years. A research investigation at the University of Texas at Austin aims to develop a wireless data acquisition system that can be used to monitor the response of steel bridge systems in an economic manner and thereby enhance this traditional inspection process. Wireless systems feature many advantages, such as minimizing the amount of wire required and reducing installation costs. However, there are also a number of challenges associated with implementing wireless systems and the research team has previously experienced communication difficulties when using wireless data acquisition systems to monitor steel highway bridges. Radio frequency (RF) studies were conducted to determine if wireless networks using IEEE 802.15.4 radios provide reliable communication in steel bridge environments. Measurements were also taken to determine the impact on the network performances using four types of antennas. While improvements in network performance were observed using high-gain antennas in an open field, the performance improvements were inconsistent when used on steel bridges and therefore their use is not recommended.

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Acknowledgments

The research discussed in this paper is sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology through the Technology Innovation Program (Award number 70NANB9H9011). The TIP project manager is Gerald Castellucci. The research project represents a joint venture among the University of Texas at Austin, National Instruments, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the researchers and do not necessarily represent those of the sponsor. The researchers would like to thank David Hohmann, Keith Ramsey, Robert Crowson, and Jon Kilgore from the Texas Department of Transportation for their assistance in identifying bridges to test the wireless monitoring system. In addition, Karl Frank, Vasilis Samaras, Ali Abu Yousef, Matthew Reichenbach, David Potter, and Richard Lindenberg made significant contributions to the research project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory, University of Texas at Austin, 10100 Burnet Road, Building 177, Austin, TX, 78758, USA

    Jeremiah Fasl, Todd Helwig & Sharon L. Wood

  2. Microelectronics Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, 10100 Burnet Road, Building 160, Austin, TX, 78758, USA

    Praveen Pasupathy & Dean P. Neikirk

  3. National Instruments, 11500 N. Mopac Expwy, Building C, Austin, TX, 78759, USA

    Frank Raffaeli

Authors
  1. Jeremiah Fasl
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  2. Todd Helwig
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  3. Sharon L. Wood
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  4. Praveen Pasupathy
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  5. Dean P. Neikirk
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  6. Frank Raffaeli
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Correspondence to Jeremiah Fasl.

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Fasl, J., Helwig, T., Wood, S.L. et al. Factors affecting wireless network communication in monitoring systems for steel bridges. J Civil Struct Health Monit 2, 87–95 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13349-012-0019-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13349-012-0019-y

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