Modal

Quantum mechanics

Algorithm

Process (computing)

Engineering

Polymer chemistry

Pure mathematics

Statistics

Field (mathematics)

Operating system

Set (abstract data type)

Data mining

Calibration

Computer science

Orthotropic material

Structural health monitoring

Physics

Finite element method

Mathematics

Genetic algorithm

Isotropy

Artificial intelligence

Tower

Structural engineering

Chemistry

Programming language

Masonry

Machine learning

Construction and Building Materials

Cultural Heritage preservation requires the combination of in situ investigations and accurate Finite Elements models in order to correctly interpret the empirical evidence and successfully apply advanced structural analyses for health assessment purposes, allowing to infer about the future evolution of the structural response and timely detect deviations from the expected behaviour. In this paper the actual dynamic behaviour of the Civic Tower of Ostra, Italy, is thoroughly investigated by means of a detailed numerical model built and calibrated using the experimental modal features estimated through field dynamic testing. To this end, a fully automated Finite Element Model Updating procedure based on genetic algorithms and machine learning is conceived and employed, allowing the successful estimation of the unknown material properties of the tower, considering both isotropic and orthotropic behavioural models for masonry. The results enabled to establish baseline information on the current structural condition of the heritage and to set performance standards that will serve to optimise the control of the structural integrity over time.

Modal-based FE model updating via genetic algorithms: Exploiting artificial intelligence to build realistic numerical models of historical structures