Genda Chen, Ph.D., P.E., F. ASCE, F. SEI Professor and Robert W. Abbett Distinguished Chair in Civil Engineering Director, INSPIRE University Transportation Center (INSPIRE UTC) Director, System and Process Assessment Research Laboratory (SPAR Lab) Associate Director, Mid-America Transportation Center (MATC) Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) Email: gchen@mst.edu; http://inspire-utc.mst.edu;http://web.mst.edu/~gchen/

Abstract

Recent developments in robotic technology and measurement science can potentially revolutionize the way and process that civil infrastructures are constructed and preserved. In this grand yet challenging transition era, automation and infromatics are two emerging concepts that will generate a wide range and long list of innovations in civil engineering. In this presentation, new developments and potential applications of nondestructive evaluations, sensing systems, imaging systems, data analytics, climbing robots, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), and 3D printing technologies will be introduced and reviewed. For new construction, how 3D printing of concrete and UAV can change the construction industry of civil infrastructures will be discussed. For preservation of existing infrastructures, how sensing and imaging systems and robots can be integrated into the current practice of visual inspection in a systematic framework, thus transforming the current ad-hoc approach to a data-driven management of bridges, will be discussed. Some of the challenges in leveraging sensing, imaging, communication, and computer simulation tools for managing existing infrastructures will be identified. Throughout this presentation, the example research activities that are on-going under the auspices of the five-year INSPIRE University Transportation Center led by Missouri S&T and awarded in December 2016 by the U.S. Department of Transportation will be used to illustrate the emerging roles of automation and informatics in the construction of new infrastructures and the preservation of existing infrastructures.