1999


From: Office of Naval Research

Keeping ships healthy

Until recently, the need to remotely monitor the structural health of Naval ships and aircraft, and civilian infrastructures such as bridges, highways, and buildings has been unmet due to technical obstacles and prohibitively high costs. ONR-funded researchers at Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc., of Alexandria, Va., have developed a technology that networks up to 30 remote sensors along a single fiber optic cable and periodically interrogates the sensors to assess structural strain. The Navy is interested in remotely assessing the structural status of ships throughout their life to help schedule maintenance, provide warnings to ship operators out at sea, and update ship structural design and analysis codes. The Federal Highway Administration recently funded exploratory use of the SPA monitoring system to assess the long-term structural response of highway pavement and bridge structures. Matching funds for the program, have also been provided by the Maryland Industrial Partnerships Program, a State of Maryland-funded program that supports research partnerships between industry and SPA's subcontractor, the University of Maryland.




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