Performance of a damage sensitive parameter obtained from different response-based bridge weigh-in-motion

Abstract

The importance of bridge health monitoring (BHM) has increased considerably and has become an essential component in monitoring transportation network. Visual inspection is mostly used to monitor the structural health of bridges. However, it has some downsides such as variability in the judgment of individual inspecting personnel, the necessity of physical presence at the bridge location, inaccessibility at remote areas, and many more. Several BHM methods are available, however, there is no solution for any type of bridge and damage condition. This leaves greater scope for new technologies to be adopted for BHM. The bridge weigh-in-motion (B-WIM) is gaining much attention as a promising alternative approach to BHM. B-WIM system captures bridge response due to vehicles traversing over it and estimates the vehicle weights. The main advantages of the B-WIM system are durability, portability, and easy installation. In addition to the weight estimation, it provides other structural information and also overcomes the limitations of pavement-based weigh-in-motion (P-WIM) systems. A few damage sensitive parameters (DSPs) have recently been developed in the last decade using the B-WIM system. However, the performance of a DSP computed utilizing multiple response time histories from a single bridge under identical circumstances is seldom studied. In this paper, a 3D finite element (FE) bridge model of a real bridge is analyzed and acceleration, strain