Augmented Reality Based Visualization for Concrete Bridge Deck Deterioration Characterized by Ground Penetrating Radar

摘要

Accurate assessment of bridge deck is critical for bridge maintenance and management. Traditional bridge deck inspection methods such as hammer soundings and chain dragging are error-prone and dependent on the operator's experience. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a nondestructive testing technology that can provide reliable and quantitative data at varying depths of a concrete bridge deck for deterioration assessment. The objective of this study is to develop a framework to visualize bridge deterioration, that is detected and characterized by GPR scans, using AR technology. To this end, a visual and location tracking based AR system is developed to integrate with GPR assessment of bridge deck. This framework can be integrated into a tablet, mobile phone, or mixed reality headset. Field experiments were conducted, and the results have demonstrated the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method. The proposed approach can provide sufficient and timely information for preventive maintenance, and thus extending the life span of bridges and reducing life-cycle cost.