Intelligent monitoring of bridge bearing systems
By integrating multi-level vibration sensing units and optical displacement monitoring mechanisms into the bridge bearing system, the problems of structural complexity and high cost of existing bridge monitoring systems are solved, achieving higher reliability and cost-effectiveness, and making it suitable for widespread use in small and medium-sized bridges.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- HENGSHUI HONGXIANG BRIDGE ENG MATERIALS TECH CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2025-08-20
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-26
AI Technical Summary
The existing bridge monitoring system suffers from insufficient reliability due to its complex structure and high cost. It is also complicated to install, has a high probability of failure, and small and medium-sized bridges cannot afford the deployment costs, making it difficult to guarantee the integrity and continuity of monitoring data.
An integrated mechanical structure design is adopted, incorporating multi-level vibration sensing units into the support body. Combined with an optical displacement monitoring mechanism, displacement monitoring is achieved using a CMOS image sensor and grating stripes, reducing hardware complexity and cost.
It significantly improves the long-term reliability and environmental adaptability of the system, reduces the risk of failure, lowers the cost of monitoring hardware, and enables the technology to be extended to the widespread application of small and medium-sized bridges.
Smart Images
Figure CN224416155U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to the field of bridge bearing monitoring, and in particular to an intelligent bridge bearing monitoring system. Background Technology
[0002] In the field of bridge structural safety monitoring, existing technologies mainly rely on sensor systems installed at the bearings to collect displacement and vibration data. These systems typically employ a split design, with displacement and vibration sensors deployed separately at different locations on the bearings, transmitting data to the monitoring host via wired or wireless means. Long-term accumulated displacement changes can reflect bearing slippage or settlement trends, while vibration spectrum characteristics are used to determine abnormal structural responses. The combination of these two factors provides a basis for assessing the bridge's operational status and developing maintenance plans.
[0003] However, current technologies have significant shortcomings in practical applications, with the core issues being insufficient reliability due to structural complexity and high cost. Structurally, traditional monitoring systems require independent installation of displacement measurement units and multiple sets of vibration sensors, resulting in a dense network of pipelines in the support area. For example, displacement monitoring typically requires additional laser rangefinders or wire encoder brackets, while vibration monitoring necessitates the dispersed placement of multiple sensor nodes. This discrete structure not only increases installation complexity but also significantly raises the probability of system failure due to the presence of numerous mechanical connectors and electrical interfaces. Simultaneously, the high procurement cost of high-precision sensors and subsequent maintenance investment (such as regular calibration and updates to protective facilities) further restricts the technology's widespread adoption, making deployment costs unaffordable for many small and medium-sized bridges. The interaction between structural complexity and cost ultimately leads to decreased reliability: complex structures inherently present more failure risk points (such as connector oxidation and cable wear), while cost pressures force engineering implementation to reduce sensor redundancy, making it difficult to guarantee the integrity and continuity of monitoring data. These factors collectively contribute to the long-term instability of existing systems, potentially missing critical structural anomalies.
[0004] To address the aforementioned technical bottlenecks, developing a novel intelligent monitoring system for bridge bearings has significant engineering value. Utility Model Content
[0005] The purpose of this application is to overcome at least one deficiency in the existing technology and provide an intelligent bridge bearing monitoring system. This system integrates multi-level vibration sensing and optical displacement monitoring structures, simplifying hardware configuration and reducing overall costs, and is expected to significantly improve the system's environmental adaptability and long-term reliability. This will provide a technological foundation for real-time safety monitoring of a wider range of bridges, ultimately enhancing the scientific rigor and timeliness of infrastructure operation and maintenance.
[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the intelligent monitoring bridge bearing system includes a pot bearing body, a mechanical displacement monitoring component, and a multi-level vibration sensing unit.
[0007] The pot bearing body includes an upper plate, a spherical crown liner, and a bottom plate, wherein the upper plate is bolted to the bridge beam, and the bottom plate is fixed to the pier base by anchors.
[0008] At least one set of telescopic guide rods are installed on the outer edge of the base plate, and the outer ends of each guide rod are connected to the displacement reflector via polyurethane buffer pads; the corresponding upper plate has a reference platform, which is in contact with the displacement reflector.
[0009] The reference platform is equipped with a CMOS image sensor module, and the surface of the displacement reflector is etched with chromium grating stripes spaced 50μm apart, forming a displacement monitoring mechanism based on the principle of optical imaging.
[0010] The multi-level vibration sensing unit comprises four physically isolated sensor groups: the first group of sensors is encapsulated in the bridge beam body in an array arrangement; the second group of sensors is embedded in a pre-set cavity inside the upper plate, the cavity being filled with silicone grease buffer medium; the third group of sensors is installed in a pre-fabricated groove in the spherical alloy layer of the spherical crown liner; and the fourth group of sensors is set in the bottom plate; the wires of the first to fourth groups of sensors are connected to the monitoring host via corrugated pipes.
[0011] The monitoring host includes a waterproof enclosure and a multi-channel data acquisition card and a wireless transmission module integrated inside the waterproof enclosure.
[0012] Furthermore, the telescopic guide rod adopts a rod body with a spring: the surface of the rod body is provided with an anti-corrosion coating; the polyurethane buffer pad is press-fitted into the groove at the end of the rod body in an interference fit manner, and its Shore hardness is 60±5HA.
[0013] Furthermore, the CMOS sensor module includes an infrared fill light group, a biconvex lens optical mechanism, and a CMOS sensor that is aligned and cooperates with the biconvex lens optical mechanism.
[0014] Compared with the prior art, this application has at least one of the following beneficial technical effects:
[0015] The integrated mechanical structure design significantly reduces system complexity: multi-stage vibration sensing units are built into specific cavities in the upper plate, spherical crown liner, and bottom plate of the support body. Simultaneously, a displacement monitoring mechanism integrating a telescopic guide rod and an optical reflector is employed, eliminating the additional supports and connecting components required for discrete sensors in traditional technologies. This highly integrated design drastically reduces pipeline layout and the number of mechanical interfaces, physically reducing system failure risks and effectively improving long-term operational reliability.
[0016] Achieving broad applicability through a cost-optimized solution: A standardized CMOS image sensor combined with a precision grating stripe optical displacement monitoring scheme replaces high-cost laser ranging or encoder systems; the vibration sensing unit employs modular packaging and buffer medium filling technology, eliminating the need for an expensive protective shell. This design ensures monitoring accuracy while significantly reducing the manufacturing cost of core components and subsequent maintenance investment, enabling the technology to be scaled up for widespread application in small and medium-sized bridges.
[0017] The beneficial effects listed above are not exhaustive of all advantages. Other potential beneficial effects and detailed technical implementation methods will be further disclosed in the embodiments or other descriptive sections of this application. Attached Figure Description
[0018] A better understanding of various aspects of this disclosure will be achieved by reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The positions, dimensions, and extents of the structures shown in the drawings, etc., do not always represent actual positions, dimensions, and extents. In the drawings:
[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of one embodiment disclosed in this application. Detailed Implementation
[0020] The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate several embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be presented in many different ways and is not limited to the embodiments described below; in fact, the embodiments described below are intended to make the disclosure more complete and to fully illustrate the scope of protection of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. It should also be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in various ways to provide further additional embodiments.
[0021] It should be understood that the same reference numerals denote the same elements in all the accompanying drawings. For clarity, the dimensions of certain features may be modified in the drawings.
[0022] It should be understood that the terminology used in this specification is for describing specific embodiments only and is not intended to limit this disclosure. All terms used in this specification (including technical and scientific terms) have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art, unless otherwise defined. For the sake of brevity and / or clarity, techniques, methods, and apparatus known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail; however, where appropriate, such techniques, methods, and apparatus should be considered part of this specification.
[0023] Unless otherwise specified, the singular forms “a,” “the,” and “the” used in this specification include the plural forms. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “containing” used in this specification indicate the presence of the claimed feature but do not exclude the presence of one or more other features. The term “and / or” used in this specification includes any and all combinations of one or more of the relevant listed items.
[0024] See attached document Figure 1 The intelligent monitoring bridge bearing system of this embodiment is composed of a pot bearing body 1, a mechanical displacement monitoring component integrated into the body, and a distributed multi-level vibration sensing unit. The signal output terminals of the displacement monitoring component and the vibration sensing unit are connected to the monitoring host 2 through protective wires to realize data acquisition and analysis.
[0025] Furthermore, the pot bearing body 1 includes an upper plate 101, a spherical crown liner 102, and a bottom plate 103; the upper plate 101 is fixedly connected to the bridge beam by bolts, and the bottom plate 103 is fixed to the pier base by anchors; on this basis, at least one telescopic guide rod 3 is provided on the outer edge of the bottom plate 103. The guide rod adopts a spring-loaded rod structure and the surface of the rod is coated with an anti-corrosion coating; the outer end of the telescopic guide rod 3 is fixed to a displacement reflector plate 5 via a polyurethane buffer pad 4. The buffer pad 4 is press-fitted into the groove at the end of the rod in an interference fit manner, and its Shore hardness is controlled within the range of 60±5HA; correspondingly, a reference platform 6 is fixed on the edge of the upper plate 101, so that the reference platform 6 and the displacement reflector plate 5 are in contact fit.
[0026] Subsequently, a CMOS image sensor module 7 is embedded inside the reference platform 6. This module includes an infrared supplementary light group, a biconvex lens optical mechanism, and a CMOS sensor that is in alignment with existing technology. The surface of the displacement reflector 5 is etched with chromium grating stripes spaced 50μm apart, and the stripe width tolerance is controlled within ±0.5μm. The reference platform 6 and the grating stripes together constitute a displacement monitoring mechanism based on the optical imaging principle. The micron-level precision gap fit is used to ensure the stability of grating image acquisition.
[0027] Furthermore, the multi-level vibration sensing unit comprises four physically isolated sensor groups: the first group of sensors 8 is encapsulated in the concrete structure inside the bridge beam in an array arrangement; the second group of sensors 9 is embedded in a pre-set sealed chamber inside the upper plate 101, which is filled with silicone grease buffer medium to attenuate high-frequency vibration noise; the third group of sensors 10 is installed in the pre-fabricated groove of the spherical alloy layer of the spherical crown liner 102, directly contacting the force transmission interface; the fourth group of sensors 11 is set in the axial through hole inside the bottom plate 103; all sensor wires are collected to the monitoring host 2 via corrugated protective pipes.
[0028] Based on this, the monitoring host 2 is integrated inside a waterproof enclosure, including a multi-channel data acquisition card and a wireless transmission module that is based on existing technology. Preferably, the hierarchical arrangement design of the vibration sensing unit is based on the characteristics of the structural vibration transmission path. By capturing the dynamic response of key nodes from the beam and force transmission components to the foundation, the health status assessment of the support under all working conditions can be achieved. When the bridge is displaced, the telescopic guide rod 3 drives the displacement reflector 5 to move relative to the reference platform 6. The CMOS image sensor module 7 calculates the displacement value by analyzing the offset of the grating stripes. At the same time, the multi-level sensor group synchronously collects vibration spectrum data, which is fused, processed, and output by the monitoring host 2 to output a composite monitoring index of the support's three-dimensional deformation and abnormal vibration.
[0029] The monitoring process and principle are as follows: When the bridge beam is displaced, the upper plate 101 drives the telescopic guide rod 3 to move horizontally, and absorbs the vertical displacement and vibration by telescopic movement. The displacement reflector 5 then translates relative to the reference platform 6. The CMOS image sensor module 7 in the reference platform 6 continuously collects the grating stripe image on the surface of the displacement reflector 5. The stripe offset is analyzed by the existing sub-pixel precision edge detection algorithm. The displacement calculation formula ΔS=N×P×K is a known technology (where N is the number of stripe movements, P is the stripe period of 50μm, and K is the optical magnification calibration coefficient). Simultaneously, the beam, upper plate 101, spherical crown liner 102, and bottom plate 103 are all equipped with the same sensor. The four-level vibration sensor group collects structural vibration signals. After signal conditioning by a multi-channel data acquisition card, the time-domain signal is converted into a frequency-domain feature spectrum using the existing fast Fourier transform algorithm. The monitoring host 2 performs correlation analysis between displacement data and vibration spectrum using the existing weighted data fusion program. Specifically, the following steps are performed: first, the vibration signal is preprocessed using a known technique based on wavelet threshold denoising; then, the characteristic energy distribution of each sensor group in the 0.1-200Hz frequency band is extracted; finally, a support health status assessment matrix is established by combining the displacement change gradient. When the displacement exceeds a preset threshold or the vibration energy changes abruptly in a specific frequency band, the wireless transmission module is triggered to send an early warning signal.
[0030] Furthermore, the power supply of the system is achieved by connecting the monitoring host 2 to the external power grid. This power supply technology is within the scope of existing technology, and those skilled in the art can implement specific power supply schemes based on known knowledge of power access and conversion, without needing to describe it in detail here.
[0031] Compared to traditional bridge monitoring systems that use laser rangefinders and independent encoders, this embodiment achieves a technological breakthrough through structural integration innovation and a low-cost optical solution. Specifically, the traditional solution requires a separate laser transmitter / receiver bracket and protective cover to be erected between the beam and the pier, and at least two independent displacement sensors to be deployed at each monitoring point, resulting in a single-point equipment cost of over 10,000 yuan and complex pipeline layout. In contrast, this embodiment integrates the displacement monitoring function into the pot bearing body 1, utilizing the mechanical coupling structure of the telescopic guide rod 3 and the grating reflector 5, along with the design of the CMOS image sensor module 7 directly embedded in the reference platform 6. This not only eliminates the need for independent sensor brackets but also reduces the hardware cost of single-point displacement monitoring.
[0032] Furthermore, traditional vibration monitoring requires drilling holes in the concrete structure around the support to install sensor groups with protective shells. The cost of a single protective shell accounts for about 45% of the total price of the sensor, and subsequent maintenance requires traffic disruption. This embodiment achieves deep integration of multi-level vibration sensing units with key force transmission components of the support body: the first group of sensors 8 is pre-embedded during beam casting to eliminate drilling costs; the second group of sensors 9 uses the upper plate 101 cavity and silicone grease filling to replace the protective shell; the third group of sensors 10 achieves direct contact detection through the groove of the spherical crown liner 102; and the fourth group of sensors 11 is integrated into the internal structure of the base plate 103. This four-level integration strategy reduces the total wiring of the system, and the protective corrugated conduit only needs a single convergence path.
[0033] More importantly, traditional systems are susceptible to interference from ambient temperature, humidity and mechanical vibration due to the deployment of discrete sensors, resulting in the need for monthly manual calibration of displacement monitoring; while this embodiment forms a closed measurement environment based on a constant gap optical monitoring mechanism, which effectively isolates external disturbances and is combined with a tolerance control of ±0.5μm for a chromium grating.
[0034] It will be understood by those skilled in the art that although this embodiment has described in detail the core structure and monitoring process of the intelligent monitoring bridge bearing system, it has not elaborated on the conventional technical means involved in the implementation of the system. This part belongs to the scope of existing technology and can be implemented by those skilled in the art based on common knowledge. Specifically, the specific circuit topology of the data acquisition card inside the monitoring host 2, the implementation method of the communication protocol stack of the wireless transmission module, and the sub-pixel interpolation calculation steps not explicitly listed in the displacement analysis algorithm are all mature and well-known technical solutions in the field. In addition, the pre-embedded fixing process of the vibration sensor in the concrete beam, the optimization method of the pipe laying path of the corrugated protective pipe, and the sealing structure design details of the waterproof enclosure can be implemented by those skilled in the art with reference to existing technical specifications according to specific engineering scenarios. It should be noted that the material parameters such as "silicone grease buffer medium" and "polyurethane buffer pad 4" mentioned in this embodiment are only illustrative. In actual applications, materials with equivalent buffering performance are allowed to be used as equivalent replacements. Finally, it must be clearly stated that the components, structural relationships, and numerical ranges described in this specific embodiment include, but are not limited to, the contents of the illustrated embodiments. Any reasonable modifications or adaptive improvements made based on this core design concept shall be deemed to fall within the protection scope of this patent application, and the scope of protection of the claims shall not be limited by the description of this embodiment.
[0035] While exemplary embodiments of this disclosure have been described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes and modifications can be made to the exemplary embodiments of this disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Therefore, all changes and modifications are included within the scope of protection of this disclosure as defined by the claims. This disclosure is defined by the appended claims, and equivalents of those claims are also included.
Claims
1. An intelligent monitoring system for bridge bearings, characterized in that, It includes a pot bearing body, a mechanical displacement monitoring component, and a multi-level vibration sensing unit; The pot bearing body includes an upper plate, a spherical crown liner and a bottom plate, wherein the upper plate is bolted to the bridge beam and the bottom plate is fixed to the pier base by anchors. At least one set of telescopic guide rods are installed on the outer edge of the base plate, and the outer end of each guide rod is connected to the displacement reflector via a polyurethane buffer pad; the corresponding upper plate has a reference platform, which is in contact with the displacement reflector. The reference platform is internally equipped with a CMOS image sensor module, and the surface of the displacement reflector is etched with chromium grating stripes spaced 50μm apart. The multi-level vibration sensing unit comprises four physically isolated sensor groups: the first group of sensors is encapsulated in the bridge beam body in an array arrangement; the second group of sensors is embedded in a pre-set cavity inside the upper plate, the cavity being filled with silicone grease buffer medium; the third group of sensors is installed in a pre-fabricated groove in the spherical alloy layer of the spherical crown liner; and the fourth group of sensors is set in the bottom plate; the wires of the first to fourth groups of sensors are connected to the monitoring host via corrugated pipes. The monitoring host includes a waterproof enclosure and a multi-channel data acquisition card and a wireless transmission module integrated inside the waterproof enclosure.
2. The intelligent bridge bearing monitoring system as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The telescopic guide rod adopts a rod body with a spring: the surface of the rod body is coated with an anti-corrosion coating; the polyurethane buffer pad is press-fitted into the groove at the end of the rod body in an interference fit manner, and its Shore hardness is 60±5HA.
3. The intelligent bridge bearing monitoring system as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The CMOS image sensor module includes an infrared fill light group, a biconvex lens optical mechanism, and a CMOS sensor that is aligned and cooperates with the biconvex lens optical mechanism.