Analysis of Sensor Technologies for Structural Health Monitoring in Civil Engineering Applications

Civil engineering is considered complete with structural health monitoring SHM, a continuous process in which structures are tested for their health and integrity, ensuring they remain safe and reliable. Recent advancements in sensor technologies for SHM have improved the empirical side of structural performance. The advancement of sensor technologies for SHM is largely related to implementing wireless and smart sensors. It is easily fixable and provides real-time information on the strain, temperature, vibration, etc. Wireless and smart sensors can also be deployed in difficult-to-access or non-safe areas, allowing for an increased size of monitored structures. In addition, the emergence of sensor technologies has resulted in smart algorithms and data analytics methods suitable for SHM. Such algorithms process huge amounts of data and detect potential structural problems or anomalies before any expected maintenance intervention.