Jiangyin Bridge: An Example of Integrating Structural Health Monitoring with Bridge Maintenance

As a field of study, structural health monitoring (SHM) sits at the crossroads of sensor technology, signal processing and structural engineering. The past decade has seen rapid growth in a variety of research works in structural health monitoring. However, there is concern among infrastructure owners and operators about the useful insights that can be obtained from SHM data. In this paper, a suspension bridge is taken as an example to show the role of its SHM system in facilitating its management and maintenance. Firstly, the function of the early-warning system, which is part of the SHM system, is explained through monitoring data of the deck surface temperature and the wind velocity. Secondly, SHM data are used to detect and analyse damage in the suspenders and expansion joints. Thirdly, SHM data are utilised in a load proof test to show the global behaviour of the bridge under passing vehicle loading. Finally, conclusions are drawn on the value of integrating SHM with the bridge maintenance.