| The elaborate inspections performed on civil structures tend to be very time and cost consuming. The Golden Boy statue was faced with this problem. Through an extensive inspection of the statue's shaft, it was determined that the diameter of the shaft had reduced by approximately 10% due to corrosion. A wind tunnel test and theoretical analysis of the statue demonstrated that for a hundred year wind the steel shaft would reach approximately 91% of its ultimate strength. To avoid this sudden collapse, the Golden Boy was removed from the top of the legislature's dome and the shaft was replaced. In addition, sensors were installed on the shaft of the Golden Boy as a mean to asses the behaviour and condition of the structure in the future. It provides an effective and cost effective method for condition assessment and Structural health monitoring (SHM). This thesis presents the installation of sensors, the key elements of a successful SHM system and an in-depth processing and interpretation of the SHM data. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
