Structural Health Monitoring of RCC Buildings Using IoT-Enabled Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract

Since urban areas are growing at a fast pace, it is crucial to have advanced and immediate structural monitoring systems to ensure that reinforced concrete structures are safe and stable. Usually, conducting inspections of RCC buildings happens only occasionally, is laborious and is done after detection of damages, increasing chances of sudden breakdowns. Since RCC buildings are difficult to monitor, this research offers a new IoT-based method for checking their health using a WSN created for them. Nodes with embedded accelerometers, strain gauges and temperature sensors are linked by the ZigBee and LoRaWAN protocols to a cloud in the center. Through this innovation, a smart algorithm detects abnormalities by examining signals in real-time and utilizing AI built into the infrastructure itself to check for cracks and unusual vibrations. Data received from the sensors is first filtered with an FFT filter, then is analyzed with a CNN trained on data about structural faults. A test version of a reinforced concrete building was built and tested with dynamically applied loads and changes in environment. The system was able to detect cracks with almost complete accuracy, had few false alarms and sent real-time alerts quickly. The proposed structure showed greater energy saving, more effective scaling and greater strength compared to usual wired long-term systems. All in all, this research points to the great benefits of combining IoT, WSN and edge AI for modern civil infrastructure monitoring systems which allows for constant, unsupervised monitoring, early spotting of flaws and predictive upkeep, thus helping create safer and smarter cities.