Energy harvesting wireless sensors and networked timing synchronization for aircraft structural health monitoring

Energy harvesting, combined with wireless sensors, could greatly improve our ability to monitor and maintain critical structures. This paper reports on the development of an integrated structural health monitoring and reporting (SHMR) system for use on Navy aircraft. Our goal was to develop and test a versatile, fully programmable SHMR system, designed to synchronize and record data from a range of wireless and hard wired sensor networks. Wireless sensors included strain gauges, accelerometers, and thermocouples. Hard-wired sensors included gyroscopes, accelerometers, and magnetometers. Data from an embedded Global Positioning System (GPS) provided position, velocity, and precise timing information.