Virtual test system of cable tension force based on LabVIEW

Measuring the tension force of cable is important to cable-stayed bridges, but there is lack of effective test systems. To solve this problem, a new test system of cable force based on LabVIEW was developed according to vibration frequency method. This paper discussed the functions and characteristics of this system beginning from its theoretical background. Through given hardware components, the vibration signal of cable was collected and transferred to computer. Then the signal was processed and the cable force could be reckoned by special designed software program. During spectrum analysis, the most important step in signal processing, DTFT method was used to obtain precise fundamental frequency. In this system, LabVIEW environment was adopted to ensure high reliability. Field experiment has proved that the virtual test system can fulfill the requirement of cable force measurement very well.