NEES@UIUC Grand Opening on Nov. 15, 2004

More information can be found in Grand Opening page.

OVERVIEW

Project Summary

The primary objective of this project is to create a facility in which a full-scale subassembly can be subjected to complex loading and imposed deformation states at multiple connection points on the subassembly, including the connection between the structure and its foundation.  The MUST-SIM facility will have the following unique features: (i) 6-DOF load and position control at multiple connection points, (ii) system modularity to allow for easy expansion and low-cost maintenance/operation, (iii) multiple dense arrays of non-contact measurement devices, and (iv) advanced visualization and data mining capabilities for integrated teleoperation and teleobservation. The MUST-SIM facility will realize the first two features through the development of modular six-DOF Loading and Boundary Condition Boxes (LBCB) that allow for precise application of complex load and boundary conditions.  The LBCBs will be able to impose motions on the test structures that are determined from the results of concurrently running numerical models of the test specimen and the surrounding structure/foundation/soil system employing pseudo-dynamic testing methods.  Dense arrays of state-of-the-art, non-contact instrumentation, will allow near real-time model updating for the model-based simulation.  In addition, this facility and its telepresence/teleoperation capabilities will be enhanced by development of multi-function data visualization and knowledge interpretation tools in cooperation with the Automated Learning Group of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).

Principal components and information flow in the MUST-SIM Facility

Examples of how the results obtained from experiments carried out in the MUST-SIM facility will be useful to the research community include: (i) reliable establishment of performance limit states that take into account the structure, foundation and soil characteristics that will aid in the accurate assessment of existing structures, as well as in development of a new generation of performance-based design guidelines, (ii) refining/updating existing analytical models and establishing new models can be facilitated through knowledge-based concepts that depend on learning from test results, (iii) the experience gained by use of the three advanced dense instrumentations will be valuable to other NEES sites, and (iv) the visualization modules developed may be extended in the future to include loss assessment models, hence they can be used to portray overall loss scenarios before and after the application of remedial measures for seismic loss reduction.

The MUST-SIM NEES facility will stimulate new and unique approaches to experimental research to address earthquake engineering issues through a collaborative shared-use testing environment, ultimately leading to improved seismic performance of our infrastructure, reduced economic losses in natural disasters, and more reliable structures.  Moreover, the MUST-SIM NEES facility, with its state-of-the-art components, will be fully integrated with the undergraduate and graduate programs of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A large number of courses have been identified where hands-on experience and demonstrations of the integrated testing-analysis-visualization approach towards performance assessment will be provided. Therefore, the wider impacts of this NEES facility are in developing advanced and reliable criteria for upgrading the existing infrastructure systems and the design of new systems, and in educating engineers and engineering students in earthquake testing, analysis, instrumentation, visualization and ultimately, in seismic risk assessment and reduction.

The MUST-SIM facility provides a total testing-analysis-visualization-display environment that combines the ability to test portions of structures under complex and continuously changing boundary and loading conditions with the ability to either model or indeed test the SSI feature of response. This is achieved through high precision application of six degrees of freedom with very high precision in both forces and displacements. Therefore, it is a NEES asset that has hitherto not been available. From the instrumentation viewpoint, there is a serious and clearly identified gap between the level of information obtained from advanced analysis and that from laboratory testing. This gap has hindered convincing and intensive calibration of software where only one or two response parameters, usually displacements, are compared to test results. The instrumentation component of this facility bridges this gap and provides, in addition to high resolution control of the test, detailed information on structural performance that enables the real calibration and enhancement of analysis software. The density of the instrumentation program for a test specimen will be comparable to that of a finite element idealization. The integration of the test with the analysis software, through extensive instrumentation using new non-contact technologies alongside traditional strain gauging and LVDTs, renders the facility novel in this respect too.

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