The community seismic network and quake-catcher network: enabling structural health monitoring through instrumentation by community participants

Monica D. Kohler; Thomas H. Heaton; Ming-Hei Cheng

doi:10.1117/12.2010306

19 April 2013 The community seismic network and quake-catcher network: enabling structural health monitoring through instrumentation by community participants

Monica D. Kohler, Thomas H. Heaton, Ming-Hei Cheng

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 8692, Sensors and Smart Structures Technologies for Civil, Mechanical, and Aerospace Systems 2013; 86923X (2013) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2010306
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2013, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

A new type of seismic network is in development that takes advantage of community volunteers to install low-cost accelerometers in houses and buildings. The Community Seismic Network and Quake-Catcher Network are examples of this, in which observational-based structural monitoring is carried out using records from one to tens of stations in a single building. We have deployed about one hundred accelerometers in a number of buildings ranging between five and 23 stories in the Los Angeles region. In addition to a USB-connected device which connects to the host’s computer, we have developed a stand-alone sensor-plug-computer device that directly connects to the internet via Ethernet or wifi. In the case of the Community Seismic Network, the sensors report both continuous data and anomalies in local acceleration to a cloud computing service consisting of data centers geographically distributed across the continent. Visualization models of the instrumented buildings’ dynamic linear response have been constructed using Google SketchUp and an associated plug-in to matlab with recorded shaking data. When data are available from only one to a very limited number of accelerometers in high rises, the buildings are represented as simple shear beam or prismatic Timoshenko beam models with soil-structure interaction. Small-magnitude earthquake records are used to identify the first set of horizontal vibrational frequencies. These frequencies are then used to compute the response on every floor of the building, constrained by the observed data. These tools are resulting in networking standards that will enable data sharing among entire communities, facility managers, and emergency response groups.

Citation Download Citation

Monica D. Kohler, Thomas H. Heaton, and Ming-Hei Cheng "The community seismic network and quake-catcher network: enabling structural health monitoring through instrumentation by community participants", Proc. SPIE 8692, Sensors and Smart Structures Technologies for Civil, Mechanical, and Aerospace Systems 2013, 86923X (19 April 2013); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2010306

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available