Research of Bridge Intelligent Inspection Technology and Application

In order to make the bridge inspection more intelligent, more efficient and more accurate, a series of bridge intelligent inspection technology and equipment have been developed independently by bridge research institutions in China. A high-precision automatic monitoring technology has been developed to measure bridge deflection and subgrade settlement, which takes use of vertical displacement sensors of micro-differential pressure semi-closed communicating pipes type and is able to measure the bridge deflection and subgrade settlement with high precision and without time limitation. The portable wireless intelligent cable force inspection technology with smart phones as terminals allows the cable force measurement more convenient and effective. The axial forces of bolts of cable clamps in suspension bridges can be measured with high precision by the ultrasonic measurement technology. The inspection technology to rapidly measure the alignment of long-span bridges can realize the centimeter-grade accuracy in rapid inspection of long-span bridges and urban ring road alignment by the vehicle-mounted devices. The image identification technology for surface damage and deformation of structures can automatically identify and quantitatively analyze the surface damages of a bridge. On the basis of all these inspection technologies, the automatic intelligent robot and the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) are developed to replace the traditional manual inspection method, which realizes the inspection of different types of complex, inaccessible and high-altitude locations in bridges. These advanced bridge intelligent inspection technologies have been employed in the field of bridge engineering in China, greatly improving the scope, accuracy and efficiency of bridge inspection. © 2019, Journal Press, China Railway Bridge Science Research Institute, Ltd. All right reserved.