A data fusion-based approach for structural damage detection with distributed long-gauge strain measurements

Distributed long gauge strain sensing technology has solved the problem of difficult identification of local damage in traditional "point" monitoring, and has received extensive attention in the field of structural damage identification. Owing to the inevitable presence of measurement noise and environmental factors in the macro strain response measurement, a single damage index has also underlined some drawbacks generally arising when multiple damages occur, or errors affect the identified dynamic properties of the systems. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a data fusion method based on the Dempster-Shafer evidence theory, relying on distributed strain sensing technology. The identification results of the modal macro strain-based index and quasi-static macro strain energy-based damage index are fused to make a comprehensive decision on structural damage location. Damage identification studies are conducted on different types of structures under impact loads and random wind loads to verify the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed data fusion method in the case of single and multiple damage conditions. The results show that the proposed data fusion method can accurately identify the damage location and effectively reduce misjudgement on undamaged locations; it has potential application value in practical structural health monitoring.