Memscon - Radio frequency identification tags linked to on board micro-electro-mechanical systems in a wireless, remote and intelligent monitoring and assessment system for the maintainance of constructed facilities.  
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Radio frequency identification tags linked to on board micro-electro-mechanical systems in a wireless, remote and intelligent monitoring and assessment system for the maintainance of constructed facilities.
 
 

Release of the sixth MEMSCON Newsletter

Release of the fifth MEMSCON Newsletter

Release of the fourth MEMSCON Newsletter


MEMSCON Facts

Contract No: 036887 

Project total cost:  4.632.430

EC contribution: 3.814.816

Project Start Date: 1/10/2008

Duration: 36 Months

Coordinator: Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS), Athens, Greece

Instrument: Specific Targeted Research Project

No of partners: 12

 

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The Challenge


Rapid advances in Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, in Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS), in lower-power wireless networking and in computation give hopes for a new generation of tiny, cheap, networked sensors that can be ‘sprayed’ on civil and building structures to provide detailed, quantitative information on the structure’s physical state while in service. This information can be used to assess the structural condition and aid decision making on rehabilitation so that safety can be attained and material consumption and rehabilitation costs can be reduced. However, these massively distributed sensor networks and the required algorithms and software tools to enable their applications must overcome a set of technological hurdles before they become widely deployable.

Current structural monitoring systems employ conventional cables to allow sensors to communicate their measurements to a central processing unit. They have high installation costs and leave wires vulnerable to ambient signal noise corruption which precludes them from becoming widely adopted. Moreover, the size and complexity of large structures require a large number of sensing points to be installed. The relatively large size of sensors currently employed in structural monitoring precludes their deployment in sensor-rich monitoring systems. An additional constraint to the sensor-rich monitoring systems is the relatively high cost of sensors.

The above problems can be solved if MEMS-based sensors are integrated with an RFID tag in a single, tiny, cheap package in a low-power, wireless, networking scheme.

The most relative properties for structural analysis are movement (acceleration and displacement) and forces. The corresponding sensors that produce these measurements are accelerometers and strain sensors (stresses and forces can be deduced from strain measurements).


Objectives


The objectives of the MEMSCON project are:

  • To integrate MEMS-based sensors and an RFID tag in a single package of small size that will be attached to reinforced concrete (r.c.) buildings for life cycle measurements of acceleration in 3 dimensions or strain in 1 dimension that will be transmitted to a remote base station using a wireless interface.
  • To develop a Decision-Support-System (DSS) for proactive rehabilitation and rehabilitation after earthquake damage in r.c. buildings. This DSS will accept input from the sensors in order to assess the structural condition of the monitored building and to select optimal remedial measures.
  • To evaluate an integrated package of the sensor system and the DSS both in experimental and field conditions

Structure
 
 
 
 
Graphical Presentation of Components
 
 
 

WP

Workpackage Title

Lead Contractor

1

Development of the Hardware (Sensors, Data Acquisition Hardware

and Wireless Communication

MEMSC AP

 

2

Development of the DSS for Proactive Rehabilitation and

Rehabilitation Following Seismic Damage RTD RISA 104.95 1 29

 

RISA

3

Laboratory Evaluation of the Sensing and Data Acquisition System

and Modules 1 and 2 of the DSS RTD UNITN 30 16 33

 

UNITN

4

Field Test of the Integrated Package on a Building RTD ACH 29 28 36

 

ACH

5

Knowledge Management and IPR Protection

MEMSC

   AP

6

Training and Dissemination of Results

UNITN

7

Consortium Management

ICCS