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ShakeNet: a portable wireless sensor network for instrumenting large civil structures

Open-File Report 2015-1134
By: , , , , and 
https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20151134

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Abstract

We report our findings from a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program-funded project to develop and test a wireless, portable, strong-motion network of up to 40 triaxial accelerometers for structural health monitoring. The overall goal of the project was to record ambient vibrations for several days from USGS-instrumented structures. Structural health monitoring has important applications in fields like civil engineering and the study of earthquakes. The emergence of wireless sensor networks provides a promising means to such applications. However, while most wireless sensor networks are still in the experimentation stage, very few take into consideration the realistic earthquake engineering application requirements. To collect comprehensive data for structural health monitoring for civil engineers, high-resolution vibration sensors and sufficient sampling rates should be adopted, which makes it challenging for current wireless sensor network technology in the following ways: processing capabilities, storage limit, and communication bandwidth. The wireless sensor network has to meet expectations set by wired sensor devices prevalent in the structural health monitoring community. For this project, we built and tested an application-realistic, commercially based, portable, wireless sensor network called ShakeNet for instrumentation of large civil structures, especially for buildings, bridges, or dams after earthquakes. Two to three people can deploy ShakeNet sensors within hours after an earthquake to measure the structural response of the building or bridge during aftershocks. ShakeNet involved the development of a new sensing platform (ShakeBox) running a software suite for networking, data collection, and monitoring. Deployments reported here on a tall building and a large dam were real-world tests of ShakeNet operation, and helped to refine both hardware and software. 

Suggested Citation

Kohler, M.D., Hao, S., Mishra, N., Govindan, R., and Nigbor, R., 2015, ShakeNet—A portable wireless sensor network for instrumenting large civil structures: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2015–1134, 31 p., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20151134.

ISSN: 2331-1258 (online)

Table of Contents

  • Executive Summary
  • Introduction
  • System Description
  • Laboratory Testing and Experiments
  • Prototype Deployments in Structures
  • Summary and Conclusions
  • References
  • Figures (14)
  • Tables (2)
Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title ShakeNet: a portable wireless sensor network for instrumenting large civil structures
Series title Open-File Report
Series number 2015-1134
DOI 10.3133/ofr20151134
Year Published 2015
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Publisher location Reston, VA
Contributing office(s) Earthquake Science Center
Description vi, 31 p.
Online Only (Y/N) Y
Additional Online Files (Y/N) N
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details