Structural Health Monitoring Nodes on Vehicle Application

Carl Byington, Matt Watson and the Impact Team demonstrate embedded devices for structural monitoring of military vehicles.
Military ground vehicles undergo high-stress loading profiles and are susceptible to operational impacts that can produce various types of damage. In ground vehicle systems, loading is distributed across the wheels, suspensions, frame, etc. through bushings and other connections leading to distributed damage (bushing rupture, tie rod failure, frame cracks, etc.). The result of such damage can have detrimental effects on the overall vehicle strength and in some cases compromise the safety of the crew. Currently implemented NDE/I techniques applied at regular maintenance intervals are becoming more and more impractical due to increased cost and manpower requirements. Therefore reliable, practical, and non-intrusive technologies for continuously assessing or periodically assessing the health state of a structure are required in order to improve vehicle availability, reduce the safety risks and total cost of ownership through elimination of costly inspection processes.