The research effort reported
in this paper aims to identify the changes between undamaged and damaged
structural
configurations by the application of Genetic Algorithms (GAs). In
particular, GAs are used to evaluate the stiffness components of a multi
degress of freedom
structure. For this purpose, the following steps are taken.
The response measurements are collected and the
eigenvalues of the system are
determined from them, in real-time. A specific genetic algorithm estimates the
corresponding stiffness matrix of the structure. From signals recorded during
different periods of the structure lifetime, one obtains a sequence of
stiffness matrices whose comparison allows to detect the presence of damage, if
any, and to localize it. An example of a three-storey, steel-concrete
composite, laboratory structure is reported. The goal is the generalization of
the process from the two-dimension schematization adopted in the previous
works, to the exploitation of a three-dimensional sensors information, so that
the eigenvalues of the system are globally estimated.