Brian: Hello I'm Brian Bendele sitting in for Rob McClendon.
Millions of commuters travel across interstate bridges every day without
even thinking about it.
But just how safe are they?
After the tragic Minnesota bridge collapse, state transportation departments
are taking a closer look at the dependability of our bridges.
Researchers from the University of Oklahoma are testing a newly developed
bridge monitoring system, a technology that can detect dilapidating
structures and ultimately save lives.
Our Jessica Betts starts us off.
Jessica: David Baldwin, associate professor of aerospace and mechanical
engineering at OU, is the lead investigator of a health monitoring system
for interstate bridges.
David Baldwin: The health being the bridge's
continued ability to carry traffic.
What we're working on is a sensor system to capture the dynamic response of
the bridge to traffic as it goes across, as well as the analysis tools to be
able to work with the data that comes off of those sensors.
Jessica: A long term, custom-made system, now installed at a secret
location on I-35.
Baldwin: Underneath this span of the bridge, there are 15 sensors installed.
Jessica: With actual computers, inside these small gray boxes,
collecting data and calculating the motion of the bridge.
Baldwin: If we can detect differences in the motion, through differences in the
output of the sensors, we can start to see the
degradation of the bridge over time.
Jessica: Information stored on this central computer.
Baldwin: When we come to a bridge that has been in service for awhile, we
don't know what the pristine, first use, looked like.
All we have is the behavior of it right now, so the best we can do is
look forward.
Jessica: Baldwin and his team have also developed a smart shock absorber,
designed for trucks that can weigh up to 80,000 pounds.
Baldwin: So the truck doesn't bounce as hard on the bridge, as it goes
across, which reduces the load on the bridge, the wear and tear.
Jessica: Technology that Baldwin says may not be a cure-all, but is a step
towards preventing unforeseen danger in bridge infrastructure.
Brian: Francis Tuttle Technology Center students recently participated in a
bridge building competition at the University of Oklahoma;
the object of the competition, to design a bridge that will hold up
under pressure.
Jimmy Bollman is the pre-engineering instructor at Francis Tuttle.
Jimmy Bollman: The bridge competition that we had going on here today is
very, very specific.
Because of the state of the roads in Oklahoma, obviously, there is a lot
of interest in getting our bridges repaired.
This competition allows our students to analyze a bridge, why it's
successful, where it fails, and how to design a better bridge.