Structural monitoring by curvature analysis using interferometric fiber optic sensors

All structures undergo deformations under the effects of loads or degradation of the constituent materials. The deformations of any structure (bridges, dams, frames, shells, tunnels, towers, wings, trusses,...) contain a lot of information about its health state. By measuring these deformations it is possible to analyse the loading and aging behavior of the structure. The presented method analyses a structure by subdividing it into sections and cells. The deformation bf each of these macro-elements is first analysed separately to obtain local information about the materials, and then combined to provide insight on the global behavior. Examples of these techniques applied to civil engineering structures fitted with long-gage-length fiber optic sensors show the variety of information that can be obtained using this powerful analysis technique.