Simultaneous identification of bridge damage and vehicle parameters based on bridge strain responses

It would be beneficial to bridge design and maintenance if bridge damages and vehicle parameters could be identified. A simultaneous identification method for identifying bridge damage and vehicle parameters is proposed, considering more than one vehicle based on the output bridge responses. Bridge damage is localized in advance to decrease the bridge damage parameters. System parameters are identified by minimizing the error between the measured and identified responses. The proposed method is then verified with a numerical simulation, and the effects of environmental noise, damage degree, road surface roughness, and multiple damages on the identification accuracy are investigated, demonstrating the efficiency of the proposed method.

Automated summary

A method for simultaneous identification of bridge damage and vehicle parameters is proposed, which utilizes the error between identified and measured responses. Numerical simulations demonstrate the efficiency of the method and investigate the effects of environmental noise, damage degree, road surface roughness, and multiple damages on identification accuracy.