TY - CONF A1 - Schubert, Thomas A1 - Máca, Petr A1 - Hering, Marcus A1 - Fiedler, Georg A1 - Beckmann, Birgit T1 - Impact Experiments on Reinforced Concrete Specimens - Investigation of Repeatability and Scaling N2 - Nowadays, the impact resistance of concrete structures has become a prominent concern for critical infrastructure operators, particularly amidst escalating geopolitical tensions. Regulators and design engineers know that reinforced concrete structures can only be developed with high efficiency by considering nonlinear structural and highly nonlinear material behavior. Therefore, specific guidelines on impact design provide instructions for design and analysis of structures required to resist impact loading. These instructions are usually based on published results and evaluated data of impact experiments carried out in laboratories. To widen the knowledge and increase the scientific data the Institute of Concrete Structures (IMB) at TUD Dresden University of Technology (TUD) has carried out many impact experiments on reinforced concrete specimens in recent years. A specially designed drop tower is available for this purpose on the premises of the Otto Mohr Laboratory, TUD. In the framework of the past research at TUD some important issues, such as influence of rebar arrangement, structural thickness, scalability of specimen and repeatability, with regard to experimental impact testing were investigated. This article presents the drop tower facility and research results of impact experiments on reinforced concrete slabs. First, the scalability of impact experiments will be discussed in conjunction with already known theoretical scaling parameters provided by researchers in the past, e.g. Rüdiger et al. [1]. Scalability of experimental data is of huge importance since protective structures made of reinforced concrete differ usually in size in comparison to experimental specimens. The second important research focus is on repeatably of impact experiments. Since impact experiments are usually time consuming and expensive, a certain impact scenario is mostly carried out only once. It is intended to show the range of deviation of impact tests on some already carried out experiments on reinforced concrete slabs. A possible standard deviation is estimated for the applied test setup. T2 - 15th International Conference on Shock & Impact Loads on Structures CY - Gothenburg, Sweden DA - 12.06.2025 KW - Reinforced concrete KW - Drop-weight impact KW - Scaling KW - Repeatability KW - Digital image correlation PY - 2025 SP - 80 EP - 91 AN - OPUS4-63627 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Agasty, Amit A1 - Costard, Rene A1 - Hering, Marcus A1 - Chruscicki, Sebastian A1 - Hicke, Konstantin A1 - Hüsken, Götz T1 - Assessment of the Application of Scaling Concepts for Blast Effects Analysis N2 - Blast testing finds its implementation in several applications, e.g. for the purpose of investigation into accidental or intentional explosions, or for an assessment of the level of protection provided by a certain structural configuration. Analytical and/or semi-empirical methods are generally limited to preliminary assessments prior to blast testing. Applications of numerical simulations with hydrocodes coupled with finite element methods (FEM) can only reduce the amount of blast testing required, as these necessitate fulfillment of the fundamental prerequisites of model verification and that of model validation. Field tests are implemented for contact detonations as well as near-field blast scenarios and shock tube tests for far-field blast scenarios. However, these can be extremely resource intensive. Reliable small-scale experiments are a promising alternative. The concepts of dimensional analysis and similarity based on Buckingham’s Π-theorem (1914) have been applied in different fields. For applications to the phenomenon of shock wave propagation, Hopkinson-Cranz or cube-root scaling is a well-established concept. When it comes to scaling the structural response, research has predominantly focused on structures made of metallic materials. Scaled investigations with concrete or reinforced concrete (RC) structures remain limited. The lack of even the most basic guidelines (far from any ‘standardized scaling methods’ for blast tests) show that scaling as a method is not yet established in blast effects analysis. In this preliminary study, we present a systematic approach and evaluation of scaling of blast effects analysis for RC slabs in order to develop guidelines for resource efficient testing methods. We study the blast scenario at two different scales. The focus of these investigations has been on evaluation of scaling of dynamics using pressure sensors, acceleration sensors and fiber optic sensing cables for distributed acoustic sensing (DAS). Further, the resulting plastic behavior upon blast is characterized by distributed strain sensing (DSS) along the same cables. T2 - 27th International Symposium on Military Aspects of Blast and Shock (MABS27) CY - Colmar, France DA - 06.10.2025 KW - Similarity and scaling KW - Blast KW - RC-slabs PY - 2025 SP - 1 EP - 11 AN - OPUS4-64617 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Baeßler, Matthias A1 - Ebell, Gino A1 - Herrmann, Ralf A1 - Hille, Falk A1 - Schneider, Ronald ED - Lienhart, Werner ED - Krüger, Markus T1 - On potentials and challenges of physics-informed SHM for civil engineering structures N2 - Physics-informed structural health monitoring, which integrates realistic physical models of material behavior, structural response, damage mechanisms, and aging processes, offers a promising approach to improve monitoring capabilities and inform operation and maintenance planning. However, the associated technical challenges and model requirements are context-specific and vary widely across applications. To illustrate the relevance and potential of the topic, two application examples are presented. The first focuses on monitoring the modal characteristics of a prestressed road bridge, where strong sensitivity to temperature variations limits the diagnostic capabilities of conventional vibration-based global monitoring. The discussion highlights how environmental influences can obscure structural changes, and emphasizes that purely data-based approaches are inherently limited to detecting anomalies and do not enable comprehensive condition diagnostics. The second example explores a physics-informed monitoring approach for prestressed concrete bridges affected by hydrogen-induced stress corrosion cracking. T2 - SHMII-13 CY - Graz, Austria DA - 01.09.2025 KW - Hydrogen Stress Corrosion Cracking KW - SHM KW - Physics informed PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-643271 SN - 978-3-99161-057-1 DO - https://doi.org/10.3217/978-3-99161-057-1-039 SP - 245 EP - 251 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz CY - Graz, Austria AN - OPUS4-64327 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Lehmann, Frank A. A1 - Hille, Falk A1 - Glisic, Branco ED - Lienhart, Werner ED - Krüger, Markus T1 - Global Perspectives on Structural Monitoring in Civil Engineering N2 - Structural Monitoring (SM) is crucial in civil engineering for ensuring the safety, functionality, and longevity of civil infrastructure, especially bridges. As its importance grows, SM practices are guided mainly by national standards, leading to fragmented approaches and limited global integration. This paper examines SM guidelines, focusing on contributions from Germany, while exploring the broader international framework. In Germany, key guidelines such as the DGZfP Merkblatt B09 and others offer structured methods and practice examples for long-term monitoring and performance assessment. Internationally, countries have developed their own SM frameworks. Amongst others, Austria’s RVS Richtlinie 13.03.01, France’s COFREND Livre Blanc, Canada’s ISIS Guidelines, the ACI Report 444.2-21 from the USA, the TRB Circular E-C246 and the CIRIA Guideline from the UK contribute to a global understanding of SM. These guidelines address common technical, theoretical, and economic challenges across regions. This paper highlights the need for international collaboration, identifying synergies and gaps to promote a unified approach to SM. It offers insights into global standards and how successful strategies can foster innovation and cohesion in SM practices worldwide. T2 - 13th International Conference on Structural Health Monitoring of Intelligent Infrastructure CY - Graz, Austria DA - 01.09.2025 KW - Structural Health Monitoring KW - bridge structures KW - guidelines PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-643859 DO - https://doi.org/10.3217/978-3-99161-057-1-063 SP - 411 EP - 419 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-64385 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Hille, Falk A1 - Wedel, Frederik A1 - Lehmann, Frank A. A1 - Pirskawetz, Stephan ED - Lienhart, Werner ED - Krüger, Markus T1 - Structural health monitoring guidelines for bridges in Germany N2 - With the advancement of digitalization and related technological developments, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) has become a useful and increasingly widespread tool to assist in the maintenance management of bridges and other engineering structures. The process of implementing monitoring requires expertise in many fields such as civil engineering, bridge operation and maintenance, monitoring technology, and data analysis. In recent years, monitoring has moved from method and technology development to standard practice. However, the implementation of monitoring as a standardized process can be an obstacle, especially for bridge operators, due to a lack of practical experience combined with the various expertise required. This can affect several areas, such as determining the cost-effectiveness of a monitoring measure, proper tendering and contracting, quality control, analysis and evaluation of measurement data, and last but not least, data management. In order to support the introduction of monitoring technologies into the practice of infrastructure operators, several guidelines have been developed in Germany in recent years by different interest groups, each with a different focus and essentially complementing each other. This paper aims to provide an overview of four different recently published guidelines and to highlight their strengths and advantages. T2 - 13th International Conference on Structural Health Monitoring of Intelligent Infrastructure CY - Graz, Austria DA - 01.09.2025 KW - Structural Health Monitoring KW - Bridge structures KW - Guidelines PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-643809 DO - https://doi.org/10.3217/978-3-99161-057-1-064 SP - 420 EP - 427 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-64380 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Herrmann, Ralf A1 - Ramasetti, Eshwar Kumar A1 - Ponnam, Poojitha A1 - Degener, Sebastian ED - Briffaut, Matthieu ED - Torrenti, Jean Michel T1 - Characterization of Smart Acceleration Sensors for Traffic Recognition using AI at the Nibelungen Bridge Worms N2 - The integration of digital sensors into Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems presents both significant opportunities and challenges, particularly in terms of sensor data management, bandwidth optimization, and system performance enhancement. This study examines the use of smart digital acceleration sensors, specifically MEMS accelerometers with CAN bus interfaces, deployed on the Nibelungen Bridge in Worms, Germany. The research evaluates the sensors' performance and calibration through laboratory and in-situ measurements, focusing on traffic load detection for vehicle recognition using Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques. Additionally, the potential of AI, particularly autoencoders, in mitigating measurement uncertainties for traffic load detection is explored. T2 - 2025 fib International Symposium CY - Antibes, France DA - 16.06.2025 KW - SHM KW - Transfer Learning KW - SPP100+ KW - Nibelungen Bridge KW - Calibration KW - MEMS PY - 2025 UR - https://shop.fib-international.org/publications/fib-proceedings/1046-21th-fib-Symposium-Proceedings-in-Antibes-2025-France SN - 978-2-940643-29-5 SN - 2617-4820 SP - 3207 EP - 3816 CY - Antibes AN - OPUS4-64848 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kang, Chongjie A1 - Herrmann, Ralf A1 - Eisermann, Cedric A1 - Marx, Steffen ED - Chang, Fu-Kuo ED - Guemes, Alfredo T1 - Collaborative Structural Health Monitoring for Bridge Digital Twins N2 - Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is an effective tool that not only reduces reliance on periodic inspections but also enhances them by analyzing the current state of a structure based on the latest structural data. Collaborative SHM, which integrates various SHM systems within the scope of bridge digital twins (BDTs), enhances infrastructure resilience and maintenance strategies. However, it faces challenges in integrating distributed sensor networks and requires interdisciplinary collaboration. In this work, various aspects of enhancing collaborative SHM with BDTs are presented. As a pilot project, the Nibelungen Bridge in Worms (NBW), Germany, is introduced. Based on specific stakeholder and project requirements, various SHM systems havebeen installed on this bridge. To address these challenges, goal-oriented solutions have been developed and elaborated. Finally, conclusions and future outlooks are presented. T2 - 15th International Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring CY - Stanford, CA, USA DA - 09.09.2025 KW - SHM KW - Collaborative Sensing KW - Nibelungen Bridge KW - SPP100+ PY - 2025 SN - 978-1-60595-699-2 DO - https://doi.org/10.12783/shm2025/37546 SP - 2305 EP - 2312 PB - DEStech Publications CY - Lancaster, PA, USA AN - OPUS4-64851 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - George, Joyal K. A1 - von Wangenheim, Kristian A1 - Kaplan, Felix A1 - Schneider, Ronald A1 - Hindersmann, Iris ED - Lienhart, Werner ED - Krüger, Markus T1 - Monitoring of civil engineering structures - current and future use cases N2 - Monitoring represents an effective approach for addressing the diverse challenges associated with the maintenance of civil engineering structures. It contributes to improving both the availability and safety of these structures. By increasing the amount of information available about the structure, monitoring supports better-informed decisions regarding its preservation. Due to the complexity of monitoring applications, specific use cases are outlined. A key advantage of these use cases is that new technologies can be tested within well-defined and limited scopes. The use cases monitoring of known, localized damage, monitoring of known deficits identified through reassessment or resulting from outdated design procedures and monitoring aimed at assessing traffic loads and their effects currently account for the majority of implemented monitoring measures. Their practical implementation is demonstrated through case studies from the Brandenburg State Road Authority. Additional use cases, such as monitoring to support structural inspections and monitoring of major structures, such as large viaducts, are gaining importance, with initial practical examples already present in Europe. Future applications reveal potential for expanded use, particularly in the context of monitoring to support predictive lifecycle management. This will become increasingly important in the implementation of digital twins, as announced in the national BIM master plan. Furthermore the concept of a Birth Certificate is intended to establish a reference state of the structure prior to commissioning, which can then be used for comparison with future measurements over time. The integration and interaction of these individual use cases pave the way for the implementation of digital twins. T2 - 13th International Conference on Structural Health Monitoring of Intelligent Infrastructure CY - Graz, Austria DA - 01.09.2025 KW - Structural Health Monitoring KW - Use Cases KW - Bridges KW - Digital Twin PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-644422 DO - https://doi.org/10.3217/978-3-99161-057-1-033 SP - 203 EP - 208 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz CY - Graz AN - OPUS4-64442 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Hille, Falk A1 - Schneider, Ronald A1 - Simon, Patrick A1 - Herrmann, Ralf A1 - Baeßler, Matthias ED - Döhler, Michael ED - Mélot, Adrien ED - Aenlle Lopez, Manuel T1 - System identification and model calibration of a steel road bridge N2 - The Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), in cooperation with the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), is working on a framework for integrating frequently updated structural models into an asset management process for bridge structures. A multi-span steel road bridge was selected as a test case for the development of this framework. In order for the structural model to represent the real behavior of the bridge with sufficient accuracy, model calibration is required. In this case, we have planned to calibrate the model based on the dynamic response of the bridge. To determine its dynamic properties, a multi-setup operational modal analysis was performed on one of the bridge spans. In parallel, a structural model of the span was developed based on the available design and service life information. Both eigenfrequencies and mode shapes were used as reference parameters to calibrate the model. A sensitivity analysis was performed to identify the most influential design parameters. Subsequently, a genetic algorithm was applied for minimizing the difference between measured and simulated characteristic responses. In the proposed paper, we summarize the measurements as well as the determination of the modal response of the bridge and describe the process of calibration of the structural model using the identified dynamic response. T2 - 11th International Operational Modal Analysis Conference (IOMAC 2025) CY - Rennes, France DA - 20.05.2025 KW - Bridge structure KW - Operational modal analysis KW - Model calibration PY - 2025 SN - 978-84-09-75120-4 SP - 114 EP - 121 PB - International Group of Operational Modal Analysis CY - Gijón, Spain AN - OPUS4-64416 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Auersch, Lutz A1 - Said, Samir A1 - Rohrmann, Rolf ED - Döhler, Michael T1 - Modal analysis of road and rail bridges for damage detection and resonance prediction N2 - In the 1980s, the Federal Institute of Material Research and Testing started with modal analysis measurements of some bridges before and after repair. For one of the bridges, a structural health monitoring was installed 1994 which is still working up to now. It has been modified and extended several times. The monitoring was extended from the critical span to three neighbouring spans. A modal analysis of the whole bridge with seven spans have been done three times, twice together with EMPA of Switzerland. Additional calibration measurements have been done and additional evaluation procedures have been implemented for the monitoring of the steadily increasing loads from the road traffic. Additional sensors were installed such as strain gauges, crack-width, and temperature sensors. The strong influence of the temperature on the natural frequencies has been studied over the years. Later, a temperature compensation has been established and a weak aging trend has been found in the monitoring data. Now, the bridge will be demolished and replaced by a new bridge. Some results of this long-term monitoring will be shown and possible damages (changes of the pre-stress or the support structure) will be discussed. A second application of modal analysis will be demonstrated: the prediction of the resonances due to passing trains. The response of a bridge to passing trains can be calculated in frequency domain as the multiplication of three spectra, the axle sequence spectrum of the train, the transfer function of the bridge, and the modal force spectrum of a single passing load. A resonance occurs if a maximum of the train spectrum coincides with the maximum of the bridge spectrum. The amplitude at this resonance is strongly influenced by the modal force spectrum which is identical to the frequency or wavenumber spectrum of the corresponding mode shape. Therefore, modal analysis from calculation, impact measurements, wind and train measurements are necessary for the prediction of the resonance occurrence and amplification. Examples of mode shape spectra for single or multi-span bridges with simply supported or continuous spans will be shown, and some relations between mode shapes and resonance amplifications will be concluded. T2 - 11th International Operational Modal Analysis Conference (IOMAC) CY - Rennes, France DA - 20.05.2025 KW - Bridge monitoring KW - Multi-span bridges KW - Damage detection KW - Resonance PY - 2025 SP - 39 EP - 46 PB - INRIA CY - Rennes AN - OPUS4-63473 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -