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Monitoring Rigid Structure Using GPS and RTS-expiremental and Feild Evidence

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16 views7 pages

Monitoring Rigid Structure Using GPS and RTS-expiremental and Feild Evidence

Uploaded by

nalaly
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS

- experimental and field evidence

Panos PSIMOULIS and Stathis STIROS, Greece

Key words: GPS, RTS, monitoring, amplitude and frequency

SUMMARY

In the last years we have made systematic studies in the Geodesy Lab. of Patras University to
investigate whether GPS and RTS can monitor the movement of relatively rigid structures,
based on experiments, analytical and statistical techniques and analysis of certain bridges.

Experiments were based on a computer-controlled device of linear sinusoidal oscillations with


pre-determined characteristics (amplitude and frequency). The oscillations were recorded
simultaneously by GPS and RTS. Based on spectral and statistical techniques, the obtained
parameters of the recorded movement (oscillation amplitude and frequency) were compared
with the pre-determined (real) ones. Our analysis revealed that GPS and RTS can define
amplitudes ≥±1cm and ≥±0.5cm, respectively. Both instruments successfully defined
frequencies up to 4 Hz, improving results compared to previous results of other investigators.

Based on these results we investigated the response of the historical Gorgopotamos Train
Bridge in central Greece to passing trains. This is a steel bridge >100 years old, with six spans
30m long. Analysis of the recordings of a GPS receiver and a RTS indicated a bending of 5-
7mm during the passing of trains. Spectral analysis of both the GPS and RTS recordings
revealed a frequency of about 0.46Hz corresponding to the excitation frequency of the
structure and a frequency of about 3.4 Hz corresponding to the main modal frequency of the
bridge span.

TS 2 – TPS, GNSS and Sensoric Applications 1/7


Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS
- experimental and field evidence

Panos PSIMOULIS and Stathis STIROS, Greece

1. INTRODUCTION

Until recently geodetic monitoring was focusing mainly on flexible structures, such as cable
bridges, sky-scrapers, towers, etc. (Celebi and Sanli, 2002; Chen et al., 2001; Roberts et al.,
2004; Breuer et al., 2008; Ogaja et al., 2003; Kijewski-Correa and Kochly, 2007; Meng et al.,
2007), in order to specify their oscillation characteristics (amplitude and frequencies). The
main characteristic of these structures is that their main frequencies are below 1 Hz and their
displacements are > 3-4 cm, usually tens of cm. These results raise the question whether
geodetic instruments can be used for the monitoring of more rigid structures, i.e. with main
modal frequencies greater than 1Hz.
This problem has been the focus of systematic studies in the Geodesy Lab. of Patras
University for years. In the framework of these studies we have upgraded the built-in
software of a robotic theodolite to display the details of high-frequency oscillations
(Psimoulis and Stiros, 2007), we have produced a software for a spectral analysis of
irregularly-spaced data (Pytharouli and Stiros, 2008), as those produced by high-frequency
RTS measurements (Stiros et al., 2008) and made numerous experiments. The basis of these
experiments were computer-controlled oscillations of known characteristics recorded by GPS
and RTS (Psimoulis and Stiros, 2007; 2008; Psimoulis et al., 2008).
The basic characteristics and results of these experiments, as well as the application of the
technique for monitoring oscillations a stiff structure in a railway bridge, are discussed in this
paper.

2. DESCRIPTION OF THE EXPERIMENTS


Our experiments were based on:
• an experimental device which produced computer-controlled oscillations
• a pair of GPS station consisting of an antenna (JPS Legent-H) and dual frequency
receivers (JPS Legent-E) with recording frequency up to 20 Hz
• a RTS (Leica TCA 1201) with nominal recording frequency up to 10 Hz and a high-
quality reflector (AGA).
The oscillation characteristics (amplitude, frequency, etc) for each experiment were defined
by a computer software and were transferred to the oscillator through a servo-motor which
generated linear oscillations of a wagon sliding on a linear rail. On top of the oscillating
wagon were mounted the RTS reflector and the GPS antenna connected with the rover
receiver, while a second GPS (base) receiver and the RTS fixed on stable ground were
recording the movement of the wagon (Fig. 2).

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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
A large number of experiments for various combinations of frequency and of amplitude of
oscillations were made, and the results were subsequently analysed. The measurements of
GPS and RTS records were converted in a new common coordinate system, in which the x-
axis coincided with the oscillation axis and the y-axis was perpendicular to it.

Figure 1: The experimental architecture: The photo shows the oscillation device and the
measuring sensors used. The RTS recording the reflector movement is out of view of
the photo.

3. PROBLEMS DURING THE EXPERIMENTS


During the processing of the GPS and RTS records, two main problems were faced. First,
gaps in GPS records, which are usual in various structural monitoring campaigns (Psimoulis
et al., 2008). Second, the highest frequency for RTS obtained was <7Hz (nominal frequency
10Hz) and the recording frequency proved to be non-constant (Stiros et al, 2008). These
problems were solved by upgrading the software of the RTS in order to provide the time of
the records in accuracy of centi-second (Psimoulis and Stiros, 2007) and by developing the
NormPeriod code, a least-squares-based technique for the spectral analysis of unequally
spaced data (Pytharouli and Stiros, 2008).

4. TIME SERIES ANALYSIS


The assessment of the accuracy of the results based on GPS/RTS measurements was based on
the comparison of the computed oscillation amplitude and frequency with the real (input)
ones of the oscillations. The amplitude of GPS and RTS records was derived from statistical
techniques such as band-pass filters (Figs. 3, 4). The dominant frequencies in the GPS and
RTS records were deduced from spectrum analysis using FFT or the NormPeriod Code and
were compared with their real preset values (Figs. 5, 6).

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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
Figure 3: GPS time series for experiments with amplitude and frequency oscillation a) 4cm
and 2Hz and b) 5cm and 3Hz, respectively. The horizontal lines indicate the real oscillation
amplitude.

Figure 4: GPS time series for experiments with amplitude and frequency oscillation a) 4cm
and 0.5Hz and b) 2cm and 1.5Hz, respectively. The horizontal lines indicate the real
oscillation amplitude

Figure 5: Representative results of FFT analysis of GPS time series a) 1 Hz and b)3Hz. The
oscillation frequency is defined accurately

Figure 6: Norm Period code analysis of RTS time series 1 Hz (left) and 4Hz (right).
The oscillation frequency is defined accurately

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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
5. CONCLUSIONS FROM THE EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
The time series analysis revealed that RTS can estimate precisely the oscillation amplitude up
to ±0.5cm, but it usually misses certain oscillation cycles in high recording frequencies. GPS
can estimate precisely oscillation with amplitude up to ±2cm when the oscillation frequency is
greater than 1Hz. For smaller (≤1 Hz) oscillation frequencies, GPS can accurately estimate
oscillation amplitude up to ±1cm. On the other hand, GPS and RTS can define accurately the
oscillation frequencies up to 4Hz. These results were valid for all experiments, including
those with problems, of course when the data were treated with the appropriate analytical and
statistical techniques described above.
These results indicate that modern geodetic techniques can be used for monitoring of
structures.

6. MONITORING OF THE GORGOPOTAMOS RAILWAY BRIDGE


The Gorgopotamos railway bridge (Figure 6) is located about 15 km south of Lamia in central
Greece and it was constructed in 1905. Parts of the bridge were destroyed during World War
II (in 1942 and in 1944) and were subsequently repaired. Thus the dynamic characteristics of
the bridge are difficult to be estimated using conventional computational techniques and the
geodetic monitoring is expected to produce useful information on its dynamic characteristics.
The Gorgopotamos bridge has a total length of 211m and consists of seven spans about 30m
long. The bridge deck is supported by trusses, while two of the pylons are made of steel and
four are masonry structures (Figures 6). Due to the steel truss and the relatively short spans
this bridge can be characterized as a rigid bridge.

Figure 6: Picture of Gorgopotamos Railway Bridge (left) and the fixed station
of the reflector and the GPS (right)

A RTS (LEICA-TCA1201) instrument and two GPS (Javad) receivers were used to monitor
the response of the bridge to passing trains. More specifically, on top of the rigid handrail, in
the middle of the span of the bridge, an AGA reflector and a GPS receiver were fixed, while a
RTS and a second GPS were recording simultaneously the vibrations of the bridge caused by
the passing trains.

The spectral analysis of GPS and RTS records, which was made by using the NormPeriod
code, revealed a dominant frequency around 0.45Hz corresponding to the main excitation
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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
frequency caused by the passing train (Fig.7) A second dominant frequency of 3.4 Hz was
observed, probably corresponding to the main modal frequency of the bridge.

Figure 7: Spectra of the movement of the bridge during the passing of the train using the
NormPeriod code (a) RTS and (b) GPS records. A dominant frequency of 0.45 Hz is observed
which corresponds to the excitation frequency while a frequency of 3.4 Hz corresponds to the
main modal frequency of the bridge

7. CONCLUSIONS

In this paper we summarize the results of our study for monitoring the oscillations of rigid
civil engineering structures using GPS and RTS. Our study was based on experiments,
software development and field measurements of a real rigid structure.
A main conclusion of our experiments is that RTS and GPS can record accurately oscillations
of amplitude ±0.5cm and ±1cm, respectively. Using the appropriate software (in particular
the NormPeriod code), especially GPS proved very accurate for the determination for
frequency up to 4 Hz.

These conclusions are reflected in the results of the monitoring of a rigid bridge, the
Gorgopotamos Railway Bridge, presented above. Hence, GPS and RTS appear as very
promising for the monitoring of rigid structures, especially since the recording frequency and
the accuracy of these instruments is expected to increase in the near future.

8. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This article is a contribution to the Research Project PENED-03ΕΔ53 of the Greek Secretariat
of Research and Technology.

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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008
9. REFERENCES

BREUER, P., CHMIELEWSKI, T., GORSKI, P., KONOPKA, E., TARCZYNSKI, L. (2008).
The Stuttgart TV Tower – displacement of the top caused by the effects of sun and wind,
Engineering Structures (in press).
ÇELEBI, M., SANLI, A. (2002). GPS in pioneering dynamic monitoring of long-period
structures, Earthquake Spectra, 18 (1), 47–61
CHEN, Y.Q., HUANG, D.F., DING, X.L., XU, Y.L., KO, J. M. (2001). Measurement of
vibrations of tall buildings with GPS, Proc. health monitoring and management of civil
infrastructure systems, SPIE, Bellingham (WA), 477–484.

KIJEWSKI-CORREA, T., KOCHLY, M., (2007). Monitoring the wind-induced response of


tall buildings: GPS performance and the issue of multipath effects. Journal of Wind
Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 95(9-11), 1176-1198.
MENG, X., DODSON, A.H., ROBERTS, G.W. (2007). Detecting bridge dynamics with GPS
and triaxial accelerometers, Engineering Structures, 29 (11), 3178-3184
Ogaja, C., Wang, J., Rizos, C. (2003). Detection of wind-induced response by wavelet
transformed GPS solutions, Journal of Surveying Engineering, 129(3), 99-104
PSIMOULIS P., PYTHAROULI, S., KARABALIS, D., STIROS, S. (2008). Potential of GPS
tomeasure frequencies of oscillations of engineering structures, Journal of Sound and
Vibration, 318(3), 606-623
PSIMOULIS, P., STIROS, S., (2008). Experimental assessment of the accuracy of GPS and
RTS for the determination of the parameters of oscillation of major structures, Computer
Aided Civil Infrastructure Engineering, 23(5), 389-403
PSIMOULIS, P., STIROS, S., (2007). Measurement of Deflections and of Oscillation
Frequencies of Engineering Structures using Robotic Theodolites (RTS), Engineering
Structures, 29(12), 3312-3324.
Pytharouli, S., Stiros, S. (2008). Spectral analysis of unevenly spaced or discontinuous data
using the “Normperiod” code, Computers and Structures, 86, 190-196.
ROBERTS, G., MENG, X., DODSON, (2004). Integrating a global positioning system and
accelerometers to monitor the deflection of bridges, Journal of Surveying Engineering, 130
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STIROS, S., PSIMOULIS, P., KOKKINOU, E. (2008). Errors Introduced By Fluctuations in
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Panos Psimoulis and Stathis Stiros
Monitoring of rigid structures using GPS and RTS - experimental and field evidence

INGEO 2008 – 4th International Conference on Engineering Surveying


Bratislava, Slovakia, October 23-24, 2008

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