Strain sensor placement method considering operational loads for virtual sensing of structural deformation

Abstract

This paper presents a new sensor placement method for real-time virtual sensing of full-field structural deformation. Virtual sensing is a key technology for structural digital twins and structural health monitoring. In mode-based virtual sensing, the appropriate placement of a limited number of strain sensors is essential. The proposed method addresses sensor placement by calculating target strain fields from operational loads using a finite element model and determining the necessary number of basis vectors to achieve target accuracy. Among initially placed sensors, those that can estimate the target strain field with low error using the given basis vectors are selected, with additional consideration of condition numbers. The performance of the proposed method is demonstrated through various numerical examples. While existing sensor placement methods often yield inconsistent virtual sensing performance, the proposed method consistently provides reliable results across various conditions.