Novel Method for Interstory Drift Measurement of Building Frames Using Laser-Displacement Sensors

Abstract

Interstory drift measurement is a critical parameter for determining earthquake damages in civil engineering structures. It can be measured using global positioning systems (GPS), accelerometers, LVDTs, and so forth. Each of these methods has limitations in terms of accuracy, cost, installation, and so on. In this study, a novel, laser-based in situ interstory drift measurement setup is proposed and tested on a shake table on which the laser sensors were mounted in the frame to measure interstory drift without any reference frame. The in situ measurements are compared with measurements from reference lasers, which are mounted on a frame separate from the structure.