PC‐Based Data‐Acquisition System for structural monitoring

Abstract

While personal‐computer‐based data‐acquisition systems have become commonplace in the laboratory environment over the past several years, their use as remote, automatically triggered data‐collection systems has been somewhat limited in comparison to that of off‐the‐shelf, dedicated systems. This is somewhat surprising given the versatility and reliability of the devices now available. This paper describes the design, development and implementation of a personal‐computer‐based system for use in such a remote data‐collection application. The system developed is reliable, versatile, cost‐effective, and meets all the demands placed on such a system. The system is currently being installed in a 305‐m television transmission tower in Shenyang, the People's Republic of China, for the monitoring of wind and wind‐induced structural motions over a two‐year period.