Damage detection with piezoceramic actuators in thin steel structures

This paper deals with an online structural health monitoring (SHM) concept, which enables the detection of damages of structures in civil engineering. Piezoceramic elements are integrated into thin steel plates as actuators and sensors. They excite the structure and measure the dynamic system response. The presented data analysis concept is based on methods of system identification. The model-updating algorithm adapts the finite element model to the measuring data using an output residual, which is minimized using a least-squares method. The application of special indicators enables the localization and quantification of changes in structural behavior.