Software-Defined MIMO Radar Fusion for Structural Health Monitoring Sensor Network

该奖项的研究目标是利用一种创新的多输入多输出雷达方法，解决目前限制结构健康监测的重大整合和部署问题。将设计一个软件定义的无线雷达传感器网络，以前所未有的精度监测结构的振动和挠度。利用多输入多输出网络的优势，实现无源分布式低功耗数据汇聚。这些影响将体现为雷达传感器网络的新能力，以进行强有力的结构健康监测。该方法将建立在雷达解决方案的混合融合的基础上，通过新的硬件和数据处理算法来实现。软件可配置性将是这一努力的驱动力，目的是在保持紧凑尺寸的同时使雷达系统的能力发生革命性变化。这项研究将结合硬件、软件和信号处理的创新，以实现一个集成的传感器网络系统，该系统将在实验室和大规模现场部署中进行验证。如果成功，这项研究的好处将包括结构健康监测的新方法，这是美国老化基础设施管理的关键问题，以及运输和制造业中监测旋转和往复机械的方法的进步。这项研究跨越了土木工程、微波工程、嵌入式系统和雷达信号处理等领域。通过学生的参与和推广，该项目的多学科性质将使传统工程课程经常错过的独特教育机会成为可能。此外，利用一个国际试验台进行拟议的全面实地试验，有望培养对在全球范围内推进知识至关重要的重要合作。

The research objective of this award is to resolve significant integration and deployment problems currently limiting structural health monitoring utilizing an innovative multiple-input multiple-output radar-based approach. A software-defined wireless radar sensor network will be devised to monitor structural vibration and deflection with unprecedented accuracy. Passive distributed sensing for low-power data aggregation will also be achieved taking advantage of the multi-input multi-output network. The impacts will be embodied as new capabilities of radar sensor networks for robust structural health monitoring. The approach will be founded on a hybrid fusion of radar solutions, enabled by novel hardware and data processing algorithms. Software configurability will be a driving force in this effort to revolutionize the capability of radar systems while maintaining a compact size. The hardware, software and signal processing innovations will be incorporated to achieve an integrated sensor network system that will be validated in both the laboratory and in a full-scale field deployment.If successful, the benefits of this research will include novel methods for structural health monitoring, a critical concern for the management of aging infrastructure in the United States, as well as the advancement of approaches to monitoring rotating and reciprocating machinery in transportation and manufacturing industries. This research bridges the fields of civil engineering, microwave engineering, embedded systems, and radar signal processing. Through student involvement and outreach, the multidisciplinary nature of this project will enable unique educational opportunities that are often missing in traditional engineering curriculums. In addition, the utilization of an international test-bed for the proposed full-scale field experiment promises to cultivate important collaborations that are critical to the advancement of knowledge on a global scale.