Multiview Vision-based Displacement Measurement of Full-Scale Miter Gate

Miter gates are critical components of locks and dams of inland waterways for facilitating movement of vessels between different water elevations. Closure of locks and dams due to gate failure or unexpected maintenance stalls barge traffic, leading to goods hardly reaching the market as well as huge economic loss. Therefore, continuous condition monitoring of miter gates while not affecting their operation is especially important for the stakeholders. Measured displacements of the gates under load are known to be informative of their condition, as well as for the updating of numerical models of the structure. Considering the need for remaining operational, as well as inaccessibility of contact-type sensors, this study proposes a multiview vision-based displacement measurement strategy tailored for full-scale miter gates. A displacement measurement strategy using multiple cameras is developed specialized for the miter gate under harsh field conditions such as non-negligible camera motion induced by strong wind and lack of reliable reference points. The proposed method will be demonstrated on the full-scale miter gate at The Dalles Lock and Dam by collecting displacements of the gate during the water-fill of the lock chamber. The measured displacements can be compared to the corresponding numerical analysis outputs to inform the updating of the model, thus providing the potential to improve the condition monitoring of the miter gates on inland waterways.