A multi-stage data-fusion procedure for damage detection of linear systems based on modal strain energy

The use of damage indicators based on changes of the systems’ dynamic properties before and after the occurrence of damage, generally represents a good tool in detecting the presence, the position and, also, the severity of the damage itself. However, signal noises, difficulties to excite systems for identifying all the modes of vibrations, particularly the ones more sensible to the damage scenarios and, also, the presence of multiple damage locations can particularly affect the efficiency of these indicators. In recent years, new algorithms and innovative techniques devoted to improve the efficiency of the classical damage indicators have been carried out in many studies. In this context, the paper presents an approach for damage identification of linear systems developed by combining the use of classical damage indicators based on the modal strain energy (MSE) with a multiple steps data-fusion procedure. The approach provides a significant improvement of the efficiency of the damage indicators particularly in presence of noises and multiple damages as showed by the numerical applications reported in the paper.