A new position measurement system using a motion-capture camera for wind tunnel tests

Considering the characteristics of wind tunnel tests, a position measurement system that can minimize the effects on the flow of simulated wind must be established. In this study, a motion-capture camera was used to measure the displacement responses of structures in a wind tunnel test, and the applicability of the system was tested. A motion-capture system (MCS) could output 3D coordinates using two-dimensional image coordinates obtained from the camera. Furthermore, this remote sensing system had some flexibility regarding lab installation because of its ability to measure at relatively long distances from the target structures. In this study, we performed wind tunnel tests on a pylon specimen and compared the measured responses of the MCS with the displacements measured with a laser displacement sensor (LDS). The results of the comparison revealed that the time-history displacement measurements from the MCS slightly exceeded those of the LDS. In addition, we confirmed the measuring reliability of the MCS by identifying the dynamic properties (natural frequency, damping ratio, and mode shape) of the test specimen using system identification methods (frequency domain decomposition, FDD). By comparing the mode shape obtained using the aforementioned methods with that obtained using the LDS, we also confirmed that the MCS could construct a more accurate mode shape (bending-deflection mode shape) with the 3D measurements.