Event Details
May 28, 2020
This free webinar will begin at 12:00 p.m. (Central Time)
Details to access the Webex webinar will be emailed along with a confirmation after you register.
Event Contact
Description
Deterioration of transportation infrastructure systems caused by repeated traffic loadings, climatic effects, and other factors is a well-known fact. Thus, regular inspection is imperative for achieving durable and sustainable transportation infrastructure systems. However, conventional inspection practices (i.e., manual) are time-consuming, labor-intensive, expensive, and often risky for the personnel involved in testing and data collection efforts.
In recent years, Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles and Systems (UAVs/UAS) (more commonly referred to as drones) are considered to be promising new and innovative tools and technologies for health monitoring and management of various transportation infrastructure systems (paved/unpaved roads, bridges, tunnels, railways, airfields, wind turbines, and so on). UAVs can be equipped with various enhanced data collection and sensing technologies including High Definition (HD) cameras, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) units, infrared thermal imaging systems, nondestructive testing (NDT) sensors, robotic arms, and so on for monitoring actual performances of transportation infrastructure systems more cost-effectively, rapidly, and safely.
Even with increased interest in the use of UAVs, there are research needs to be addressed in understanding the use and value of data collected with UAVs for achieving the beneficial use of such tools in actual health monitoring and management practices. The study and presentation are going to summarize a set of new and innovative ways of using UAVs for inspecting various transportation infrastructure systems. Their feasibility, implementation strategies, and potential limitations of using UAS for such applications are going to be addressed as well.