Using AI to Design a Bridge Monitoring System

In this assignment, students analyzed the I-35W bridge collapse and developed a structural health monitoring plan. They selected sensing technologies based on background readings and used a generative AI tool to extract structural data for simulation.

Authors: 

Civil and Environmental Engineering Department

  • Kurt Walter Soncco Sinchi, PhD student
  • SoungEil Houng, PhD student
  • Mohamad Mahdi Hallal, Assistant Professor
  • Luis Alfredo Ceferino Rojas, Assistant Professor
  • Kenichi Soga, Professor

Course Number & Title: CIVENG170A/270A, Infrastructure Sensing and Modeling

This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Details
Assignment Title
 		Using AI to Design a Bridge Monitoring System
Delivery FormatIn-person
Learning Objectives
  • Analyze the failure mechanisms of the I-35W bridge to identify critical structural components and appropriate monitoring technologies.
  • Integrate Generative AI tools into structural engineering workflows to effectively extract data from hand-drafted designs for computational analysis.
  • Design a comprehensive structural health monitoring plan that justifies the selection and placement of sensors on a 2D truss bridge.
  • Evaluate the trade-offs between sensor configuration, data acquisition quality, and overall project cost-effectiveness.
Brief Summary of AssignmentThe assignment involves analyzing the I-35W bridge collapse and designing a structural health monitoring plan. For Question 1, students write a one-page essay identifying key bridge components to monitor and justifying the selected sensing technologies based on background readings. Question 2 requires students to hand-draft a 2D truss bridge, use a GenAI tool (such as ChatGPT, Copilot, or Gemini) to extract structural data, convert this into a simulation format, and perform a sensor placement analysis. Students reflect on how sensor positioning affects data collection and cost-effectiveness.
Guardrails Shared with StudentsN/A
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