Concrete bridge deck early problem detection and mitigation using robotics

Nenad Gucunski; Jingang Yi; Basily Basily; Trung Duong; Jinyoung Kim; Perumalsamy Balaguru; Hooman Parvardeh; Ali Maher; Husam Najm

doi:10.1117/12.2084972

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5 May 2015 Concrete bridge deck early problem detection and mitigation using robotics

Nenad Gucunski, Jingang Yi, Basily Basily, Trung Duong, Jinyoung Kim, Perumalsamy Balaguru, Hooman Parvardeh, Ali Maher, Husam Najm

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Proceedings Volume 9437, Structural Health Monitoring and Inspection of Advanced Materials, Aerospace, and Civil Infrastructure 2015; 94370P (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2084972
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2015, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

More economical management of bridges can be achieved through early problem detection and mitigation. The paper describes development and implementation of two fully automated (robotic) systems for nondestructive evaluation (NDE) and minimally invasive rehabilitation of concrete bridge decks. The NDE system named RABIT was developed with the support from Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). It implements multiple NDE technologies, namely: electrical resistivity (ER), impact echo (IE), ground-penetrating radar (GPR), and ultrasonic surface waves (USW). In addition, the system utilizes advanced vision to substitute traditional visual inspection. The RABIT system collects data at significantly higher speeds than it is done using traditional NDE equipment. The associated platform for the enhanced interpretation of condition assessment in concrete bridge decks utilizes data integration, fusion, and deterioration and defect visualization. The interpretation and visualization platform specifically addresses data integration and fusion from the four NDE technologies. The data visualization platform facilitates an intuitive presentation of the main deterioration due to: corrosion, delamination, and concrete degradation, by integrating NDE survey results and high resolution deck surface imaging. The rehabilitation robotic system was developed with the support from National Institute of Standards and Technology-Technology Innovation Program (NIST-TIP). The system utilizes advanced robotics and novel materials to repair problems in concrete decks, primarily early stage delamination and internal cracking, using a minimally invasive approach. Since both systems use global positioning systems for navigation, some of the current efforts concentrate on their coordination for the most effective joint evaluation and rehabilitation.

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Nenad Gucunski, Jingang Yi, Basily Basily, Trung Duong, Jinyoung Kim, Perumalsamy Balaguru, Hooman Parvardeh, Ali Maher, and Husam Najm "Concrete bridge deck early problem detection and mitigation using robotics", Proc. SPIE 9437, Structural Health Monitoring and Inspection of Advanced Materials, Aerospace, and Civil Infrastructure 2015, 94370P (5 May 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2084972

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