How to Make a Self-sensing House with Distributed Fiber Optic Sensing

Abstract

Distributed fiber optic sensing (DFOS) is commonly used to monitor large structures like bridges or tunnels. However, DFOS can also be beneficial for smaller structures, even single family houses. This articles discusses a real world example where sensing cables were embedded in a two story house. By applying different fiber optic sensing techniques, various information can be gathered using the same DFOS cables.

Distributed temperature sensing (DTS) enabled the assessment of the heat insulation of the ground plate of the house. Potential weak points can be clearly identified and repair works can be made at the exact location of the problem. Distributed strain sensing (DSS) was used to monitor the swelling and shrinkage of the concrete. In addition, numerical simulations of the ceiling bending were verified with DSS. Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) was applied for intruder detection. It is shown that walking of people in the house could be detected and that their location was pinpointed to individual rooms.

In this article, the installation, the data acquisition and analysis of the different sensing techniques are discussed. An outlook is given on how the presented approaches can be scaled from the monitoring of a single house to an apartment building.