Optical fibre strain monitoring system
Keywords Smart Fibres, Fibre optics, Strain analysis, Safety, Aircraft
The optical fibre strain monitoring system has been granted Millennium Products status by the Design Council after Prime Minister Tony Blair challenged businesses to show that the UK is the creative powerhouse of the world.
The news was announced recently by Nicol Stephen, Scottish Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning, at the Lighthouse building in Glasgow.
The system or Smart Fibre System comprises a lightweight array of fibre optics that can be embedded into structures and used to detect loads. This can be compared to a human nervous system. It is thought to be the first time that internal loads can be measured in such a way. The data can be used to give immediate safety information or structural status or can be used to provide long-term, structural health monitoring. It can be applied to aircraft, civil engineering structures, offshore structures, ships and yachts.
It has been developed by Smart Fibres Ltd following a three-year,DTI-sponsored research and development project under the LINKS scheme with British Aerospace, Aston University, Carbospars and Pendennis Shipyard. Carbospars applied the system to their free-standing AeroRig and other very large yacht spars. Smart Fibres Ltd has been set up as a subsidiary of Carbospars Ltd in order to develop this product. The company has previously won a Millennium Products award for its unique AeroRig system in the second tranche.
The company reports that it expects substantial growth in a world-wide market and will provide considerable additional employment.
It is believed that the system will provide greater safety to aircraft, civil engineering and offshore structures by providing improved warning of damage/failure yet also offers cost reductions by accelerating design development and leading to condition-related maintenance.
Details available from: Smart Fibres Ltd. Tel: +44 (0)1703 454639; Fax: +44(0)1703 455361; e-mail: info@smartfibres.com;Web site: www.smartfibres.com
